This Automaker Is Helping The Blind To “See”!
It seems as though technology is evolving at a faster rate than our imaginations. For example, you wouldn’t have expected a automaker to come up with a concept for a car that helps the blind “see” out the window and visualise the scenery on a roadtrip.
Except it will be totally happening.
Ford has developed a "new haptic visual language" that allows blind people to experience the view through a car window. Called “Feel the View”, this amazing device is a smart window which captures an image of the surrounding scenery and translates it into vibrations on a tactile display that a passenger can explore through touch. When the device detects the users touch as he or she runs their fingers across the window, it will trigger a different vibration for each of the 255 shades to allow the visually-challenged to feel the passing scenery.
Image from: CNN
With over 255 different levels of vibrations to help the passenger visualise the scenery, the device also comes with a built-in camera attached to one of the car’s windows which is able to captures snapshots of the view outside the car before converting them into a grey scale image. The device is also accompanied by an AI voice assistant, to enhance the user’s experience.
"We seek to make people's lives better and this was a fantastic opportunity to help blind passengers experience a great aspect of driving," said Marco Alù Saffi, spokesperson for Ford of Italy. "The technology is advanced, but the concept is simple — and could turn mundane journeys into truly memorable ones."
Ford has also stated that Feel The View was conceptualised to "allow passengers to touch the scene and rebuild in their mind the landscape in front of them".
Image from: New Atlas
As intriguing as it sounds, there is however, no word on whether the prototype will actually be put into production. We’re actually quite excited for it because of the possibilities it could bring about!
What do you think about this new technology? Leave a comment below!