NEW INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGICAL PRODUCTS FOR THE BLIND PEOPLE
Whenever we meet a blind or a visually impaired person the first thing that comes in our mind is the stick they carry and the Braille through which they read. This is not just a thought but in actuality Braille has got a very important place and it is so important that WORLD Braille Day is celebrated annually on the 4th January. This day marks the birthday of Louis Braille, who is the inventor of Braille. The day has a special importance as it recognizes the contributions of Louise Braille in helping blind people to read and write.
Louise Braille invented this magical thing at the age of 15.It is basically a code that uses bumps and indentation on a surface to represent letters, these letters can be recognized by touch. There are now many versions of Braille. All languages and subjects like mathematics, music and computer programming can be read and written in braille.
This year on the World Braille Day, Pakistan’s first ever Braille Book Corner named as “Gosha-i-Noor” was inaugurated at the National Library of Pakistan.
New technological products are continually improving. A wide range of products have emerged in the past few years that are helping the visually impaired person in many ways. While some products are still in development, it’s really great to see so much work is being done in this area.Let’s have a look on the best technological advancement;
1. MY EYE 2.0
OrCam is a company which has developed a product using artificial intelligence to provide solutions for the visually impaired persons. My Eye is a figure sized camera that attaches to a pair of glasses and provides the robotic vision. The device has a camera, speaker which reads text and provides the relevant information to the user. It can identify objects and colors and is able to read text of different sizes and fonts.
2. DOT SMART WATCH
Dot is the first smart watch which is tactile. The device is very useful for the blind persons. This dot watch tells the time, date and share notifications. The watch is really smart, stylish and sleek with multiple additional features.
3. MAPTIC
This device consists of a visual sensor, which is worn around the neck. This device helps visually impaired users to navigate the world around them. It helps the user to detect uneven surfaces and obstacles thus users are guided through a physical environment.
4. HOROUS
This device consists of a pocket size unit and a headset. The headset has a camera which can recognize faces, read text and can identify objects. As the user approaches an object or person, it sends a prompt which can recognize anything in its field of vision and encourages the user to identify it.
5. OLLI
This is the device designed especially for the visually impaired person to enjoy their freedom by driving the car. It is a self-driving shuttle designed by Local Motors. The shuttle has audio cues and hepatic sensors and cameras fitted which helps in signaling the impaired persons.
There are many more innovative products that are developing day by day to help the visually impaired person. The devices like eSight, robotic cane(stick that a blind person takes), Tactile (which is a modified version of Braille), Braille Tablets, Smart glasses, Brain port , Way band and many more are in the developing stages. All such gadgets and devices are there to promise better solutions for the blind person and help them in any possible way through technology.
