Hi all, hope all are doing fine pasting below article, which get from another list. Regards Wahid
---------- Forwarded message ---------- Phone For Blind Uses Braille By ELLSON A. QUISMORIO March 10, 2012, 4:06am MANILA, Philippines - Girly Perando, Janiena Roxanne Dirain and Kristine Emy Matabang call it their "baby." But it could very well be the most valuable companion a blind person could ever have. The three computer engineering students have come with a "Braille Cell Phone" for the blind with a dedicated "Wearable Obstacle Detection System." Last month, the device won for the three Mapua Institute of Technology students the grand prize in the 8th Smart Wireless Engineering Education Program (SWEEP) Innovations and Excellence Awards. The specialized mobile phone allows the user to receive and "read" text messages via the centuries-old Braille system in the form of a small rectangle containing two columns of three dots each. Placed on top of this rectangle is a traditional keypad. "The phone vibrates when it receives a text message. The message can be read (by character) with the dots, which raise automatically," explained Girly, 21. Incoming and outgoing calls are facilitated through a headset. Like a normal mobile phone, the Braille phone also uses a subscriber identity module (SIM) card and is rechargeable. The main console is quite bulky and must be worn over the shoulder through a sling bag. But then, it is more than just a communication device. Hardwired to the console is a four-inch-long sensor, which by design is attached to a walking stick-a necessity for blind or visually-impaired individuals. "If the sensor detects that there is something in front of the person, or is about to bump into something (like a wall), the phone vibrates and gives off a buzzing sound," said Janiena, 21, as she waved her hand in demonstration. The sensor, the students said, can detect an object as far as five meters away. The overall concept and design earned the all-female group P500,000 in cash as top prize in the competition. Twenty-year-old Kristine said building the phone was not easy. "We took it one step at a time. We tried to finish one phase before moving on to the next," she said. But more than cash prizes and accolade, the three want their "baby" to realize its full potential to be a useful tool for the blind. Ayra Panganiban, the group's adviser, recalled her initial reaction upon hearing about the Braille phone. "When I saw that their target the visually-impaired, and that this device would end up helping a lot of these people, I told them to go for it," she said. Panganiban said the challenge now is to design and build a more compact Braille phone, with wireless connectivity to the walking stick sensor. Voice recognition would also be useful feature. Dr. Felicito Caluyo, the dean of Computer Engineering in Mapua, said the school is now moving forward with the students' achievement with the Braille phone. "We're now in the process of looking for additional investors so we may be able to produce more Braille phones to be donated to beneficiaries," Caluyo said. He noted that some foreign investors, particularly from Canada, have expressed interest. Apparently, some blind or visually-impaired individuals who sampled the Braille phone during its testing phase can hardly wait to get one of their own. "They asked us if the phone was out in the market already. They seemed to like it. The feedback was good," Girly said. ---- Search for old postings at: http://www.mail-archive.com/accessindia@accessindia.org.in/ To unsubscribe send a message to accessindia-requ...@accessindia.org.in with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in
