If you missed Black Friday and the first part of INDATA’s Gift Giving Guide podcast, stay tuned for the second episode this Friday, December 5. Here’s a sneak peek at a few products the INDATA team will be highlighting.
Smart Sunglasses
Ray-Ban Meta AI glasses may look like a typical pair of spectacles, but with a built-in camera and speaker, they represent “the next step in smart eyewear.”
“[These glasses] started out as a cool way to be hands-free, take video and then immediately post that to social media,” INDATA Outreach and Education Lead Nikol Allee says on the podcast. “[But the developers] started to see how they could enhance independence in the disability world. So, for people with low vision, the glasses are great because they can describe what’s around you. There’s an app, a service called Be My Eyes, and it provides support from a sighted volunteer.”
After the user calls the service through a simple voice command, the volunteer can then see through the glasses’ built-in camera and provide real-time assistance, with audio relayed through the glasses’ open-ear speakers.
Whether it’s reading a restaurant menu, navigating a city street, or identifying objects in a store, users can receive immediate support without needing to handle their smartphone.
Guided Hands
The Guided Hands device from ImaginAble Solutions allows anyone with limited fine motor skills to write, paint, draw, and access technology through an ergonomic surface and interchangeable handle.
On the podcast, Allee talks about an INDATA client with spina bifida who was able to reclaim her passion for painting thanks to Guided Hands.
“I’ve actually got a piece of her art up in my house,” Allee says. “It just lit up her world to be able to paint again.”
Elli-Q
ElliQ is “the very first proactive, empathetic robotic companion.” Designed with seniors in mind, she is also fit for people with disabilities or anyone in need of someone around the house.
“Elli-Q can turn on music, she can encourage activity. I think we all need that,” says Josh Anderson, director of assistive technology at Easterseals Crossroads. “I need somebody at my desk to say, ‘Stand up now and stretch.’ Those reminders are [a form of] companionship, [and we need] somebody to talk to about what the weather’s like and what’s a good song to listen to and tell us that joke.”
Sounds handy for the holidays! Stay tuned for more on this Friday’s episode of Assistive Technology Update.
Ray-Ban Meta AI Glasses photo courtesy of Ray-Ban.com.
Guided Hands photos courtesy of ImaginableSolutions.com and Nikol Allee.
Elli-Q photo courtesy of ElliQ.com.