[dbaust] Helen Keller, deaf-blind, adaptive technology, disability

From: "Peter Tarrant" <tarrp@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <dbaust@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Sat, 5 Jul 2014 13:49:30 +1000
Helen Keller, deaf-blind, adaptive technology, disability

URL:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2014/06/27/helen-keller-birthday-deaf-bli
nd-apps-technology/11496293/

(Photo: Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults)

Friday is Helen Keller's birthday. For the deaf-blind writer and activist,
finger spelling was the killer app that gave her access to the world.

Today, the technologies available for the deaf and blind are game-changers.

There are devices that plug into a phone and turn text messages into moving
braille for the fingertips to read. There are GPS devices that provide
talking maps. Apps that use the camera on an iPhone to read the denomination
of a bill to the user.

"Someone can take an iPhone and use a bar code scanner to identify what's in
their kitchen cabinet," said Deborah Harlin, program coordinator for
adaptive technology at the Helen Keller National Center in San Diego, Calif.

Small, refreshable braille display devices connect to iPhone via Bluetooth,
so the user can send and receive text messages.

"It's about 7 inches or so and not heavy, so you can wear it around your
neck or you can hook it to your belt," said Ryan Odland. He coordinates the
New York Deaf-Blind Equipment Distribution Program.

Keller had to have things transcribed so she could read them in braille.
Today there are apps that do optical character recognition. "You take your
iPhone, snap a picture of something and it will voice it to you," said
Harlin.

Many of the technologies work as well for the sighted and hearing as for
those who can neither see nor hear.

Odland, who is deaf and blind, travels frequently for his job. "I use an app
on my phone called HopStop that gives me specific information for how many
subway stops I have go before I get off."

Other apps:

Color ID Free: Is the sky cloudy? Is the tomato ripe? Does this tie match
that shirt? Point your iPhone at an object and it will tell you want color
it is.

Light Detector: Emits a sound when held near a light source, so the user can
tell if the lights are on or off, as well as find windows and doors.

VM Alert: A motion detector that alerts the user when someone or something
approaches them.


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[dbaust] Helen Keller, deaf-blind, adaptive technology, disability

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