Augmented reality smart glasses can help people see more about the world around them. But how can they help blind people
Google Glass smart glasses caught the imagination of many, but the product has not gained much traction outside of vertical and industrial applications. Envision is a company that has been using smart glasses technology to help people with impaired vision or blindness. The key is that the onboard camera can provide images for real-time processing, which can then result in spoken prompts delivered discretely through the glasses’ speaker. This approach can help the wearer read labels on food or medicine containers. It can identify street signs and use the location information to provide spoken directions to a desired destination. It can identify faces of friends and family so the wearer knows who is the room. And the system even lets the user send the camera images to a sighted companion or a support center. The result is technology that can restore independence and confidence to users with limited or no vision.