Empowering the Visually Impaired With AI
Visually impaired individuals face countless challenges and hurdles everyday as they attempt to navigate our vision-oriented infrastructures. As these individuals today form circa 10% of Germany’s population 1, it is crucial that we can accommodate them.
Fortunately, advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare have the potential to provide a much needed boost for the visually impaired.
More about this posts target audience
New Shades for a New Generation
Artificial Intelligence equipped glasses are a new and innovative technology that is helping to improve the lives of the visually impaired. AI glasses are outfitted with a camera and software for image, object and text recognition, allowing people who are legally blind to “see” objects in their environment. The glasses can detect objects and relay information such as distance, size, and shape to the user. This technology is helping to increase the independence and mobility of the visually impaired, allowing them to visualize and navigate their environment with ease.
The glasses are equipped with a myriad of features that make them incredibly helpful for the visually impaired. They have an adjustable focus that can be adjusted to the individual’s needs, allowing them to see objects that may be too far away or too close for them to see normally. Additionally, the glasses are equipped with a voice assistant that supports a multitude of features such as provide directions, take phone calls, send text messages and surf the internet for them. This technology is allowing visually impaired people to live more independently and actively engage in their communities.
AI glasses are not only helpful for the visually impaired, but they are also helping to advance medical research. By providing researchers with data on how the visually impaired interact with their environment, researchers can develop better treatments and therapies to help them. These glasses have a lot of room for improvement but their current capabilities show great promise for the future. This video shows the current problems the glasses tackle.
Shaping the Future with AI
Many sectors realize the potential of AI and seek to incorporate and further the development of AI-based technologies, such as autonomous vehicles, augmented reality and autonomous robots. This technology is helping to make the world a more accessible place for everyone, especially to the disabled.
Self-driving Cars are now still in their infancy where the manufacturers recommend using the feature on highways only, however as the manufacturers fine-tune and train the AI, it seems to be only a matter of time before visually impaired individuals could ride vehicles unattended. Though, the day we achieve “Level 4 autonomy” 2 has yet to come.
Another interesting venture is cleaning tasks which the visually impaired usually struggle with. Many products are readily available on the market mainly the Roomba 3 that has proven successful as a vacuum and mop along with other products such as the Alfawise magnetic windows cleaner 4. While, the above products cover only a subset of house chores it certainly paves the way for more comprehensive solutions in the near future.
Since we’ve been using technology to take care of our chores, can it cook? The answer isn’t quite straightforward, while autonomous kitchens have been popping up in limited applications such as restaurants severing noodles in Japan 5 and pizza in Los Angeles 6, these robots are specialized. One Application that isn’t specialized is the Moley Kitchen robot 7 and makes use of two robotic arms with pressure sensitive fingers, though as impressive as that sounds, the online videos posted by the company more than a year ago show that the robot isn’t “there” yet 8.
The Catch
Do these solutions and optimistic prospects for the future come with no disadvantage? Well, as of now the glass appears to be half empty.
An Arm and a Leg
The first issue at hand is a matter of cost, whether it’s the $2,500 AI Glasses 9, $50,000 autonomous vehicle 10, $500 Cleaning Robot 11, or a “price upon request” kitchen, none of these solutions are cheap. Despite the steep prices it is certain that with time and the advancement of technology these prices should flatten out.
Privacy and Dignity
Technologies today, mainly those that incorporate AI have been under the spotlight due to privacy concerns. AI programs perfect themselves by training on data, and what better data than real customer data. All major tech corporations - Microsoft, Apple and Google have all been under scrutiny for mishandling customer data 12. Amazon not long ago has acquired the company behind the Roomba robots sparking great online concern on the real reasons behind the move 13.With this already well-known information in mind are we sure signing off our private health data with profit-driven companies is a worthy gamble? Such problems while difficult are solvable, by integrating governmental supervision and Laws such as the European “GDPR” regulations. However, companies with deep pockets know that money talks.
Invisible Disabilities: Taking Charge Again
This brings us to the next, broader, issue that these solutions indirectly solve; visually impaired people face a variety of mental challenges in their daily lives. These include feelings of isolation, frustration, depression, anxiety, fear, and low self-esteem. They may feel isolated from society as a whole due to their disability as they may not be able to participate in activities that sighted people take for granted, such as driving, sports, or even navigating a new environment without assistance. The inability to perform “normal” tasks leads to frustration, which can be compounded when they are not given the same access to education, employment, or other opportunities as their sighted peers. Exposure to these feelings daily or rather constantly can drive a person to depression. Visually impaired people especially, younger adults who have not yet developed confidence and self-management skills 14, may feel depressed due to their disability and they are missing out on life experiences or opportunities.
The solutions discussed above can reinvigorate confidence by giving unsighted individuals back independence bit by bit, and help them experience new activities safely.
Target Audience
This post is directed towards Digital health researchers, medical technicians, medical researchers, and visually impaired individuals.