Point and Listen: Augmented Reality Interfaces for the Visually Impaired

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Point and Listen: Augmented Reality Interfaces for the Visually Impaired Summary CamIO (“Camera Input-Output”) is a project designed to make physical objects, including documents, maps and 3D objects such as architectural models, fully accessible to people who are blind or visually impaired. It makes these objects accessible by means of an audio-based Augmented Reality (AR) interface: the user points to a specific location on an object of interest and hears audio information about this location read aloud (or sees an enhanced image of the selected location if the user has low vision). Compared with other approaches to making objects accessible to people who are blind or visually impaired, CamIO offers several advantages: (a) there is no need to modify or augment existing objects (e.g., with braille labels or special touch-sensitive buttons), requiring only a smartphone and optional wearable camera device; (b) CamIO is accessible even to those who are not fluent braille readers; and (c) it permits natural exploration of the object with all fingers to enable audio-haptic interactions with the object. Building on our past work on the prototype CamIO iPhone app, we plan to develop powerful enhancements and new functionality, including finger tracking as an alternative to the use of a pointing stylus, and support for wearable options such as the camera-enabled Envision Glasses that will offer a far superior user interface to what is possible with a stand-alone smartphone app. New authoring capabilities will make it easy for blind and visually impaired users and sighted assistants to create audio labels for objects. We will also pursue two exciting applications of CamIO in depth: using CamIO to make tactile maps fully interactive and easier to understand, and the development of interactive installations such as a 3D scale model of a large playground that helps visually impaired playground visitors familiarize themselves with the playground’s layout and features. Finally, people who are blind or visually impaired – the target users of the CamIO system – will be involved in all aspects of the proposed research, to maximize the impact of the research effort.