New Tools for the Deaf
Over the last few decades
there have been many technological advancements which aid people
with different needs. There are artificial limbs, programs that can
read documents aloud and type as you speak, and close captioning for
streaming videos. Now, there is new technology on the market for
the deaf, which include motion recognition and new video apps.
Motion recognition can
control your computer with a swipe of your finger in front of your
screen and drive cars within a game without holding anything (Pogue,
2013). How can this new touch-less technology make a bigger change
in the world? The answer has to do with Sign Language. In order to
have a conversation between a deaf person and a hearing person, both
would need to write the dialogue on a piece of paper. With motion
recognition technology, however, there is no longer a need for that
piece of paper.
Motion recognition is a surreal idea for gaming and creating. There
are many different ways to control a game or program whether it is
shaping imaginary clay with your hands or waving your hand. This
new motion recognition is new and exciting to use; however, the
controls for attempting to click are different from using a mouse.
One might have to hold a finger still over where one wants to click
(which can be very uncomfortable) or jab at the sensor or the screen
(Pogue, 2013). Leap Motion has been the most recent
talk of motion recognition. With the device’s slim look and
brilliant technology, it has been very popular. The Leap Motion
controller is a product created by Michael Buckwald, CEO and
Co-founder, and David Holz, CTO and Co-founder of Leap Motion
Incorporated, (“About Us”, 2014). The dimensions of the Leap Motion
controller are 1.2 x 3 x 0.5 inches.
It has a silver edge, and the top and bottom have two slips of
black non-stick rubber. The Leap Motion sensor plugs into a
computer, laptop or Apple Mac with a universal serial bus port, also
known as USB. It can precisely recognize body parts with its
cameras and infrared sensors within a two foot by two foot by two
foot cube. It can “see” a person’s hands, fingers and joints to
recognize motion. However, the technology is useless without
corresponding apps. Airspace is an online app store for Leap Motion
apps (“Our Device”, 2014). Airspace has 75 specially designed apps
to be used with the Leap Motion controller (Pogue, 2013). The Leap
Motion Sensor is available for a reasonable price of $79.99 on the
Leap Motion website (“Our Device”, 2014).
However, there is more the deaf can
do with a Leap Motion controller.
MotionSavvy has developed software that is different and specialized
just for the deaf. It is a company started by four deaf students
who wanted to create a way for the deaf to “speak,” as stated by
Ryan Hait-Campbell in his interview with Seth Gerils on i DEAF News
on May 24, 2014 (“MotionSavvy”, 2014). The four deaf owners of
MotionSavvy are Ryan Hait-Cambell, who is the Chief Executive
officer; Alexandr Opalk, who is the Chief Technology Officer; Jordan
Stemper who is the Chief Design Officer; and Wade Kellard, who is
the Chief Strategic Officer. In 2013, the founders took third place
with the idea of a Sign Language translator utilizing motion
recognition software at National Technical Institution for the Deaf
Next Big Idea contest at Rochester Institution of Technology. In
January 2014, MotionSavvy was accepted into the Leap AXLR8R program
of Leap Motion, a program that focuses on using motion recognition
to turn world changing ideas into a reality (“MotionSavvy”, 2014).
Currently, MotionSavvy has a Sign Language translator which is in
the beta testing phase. This MotionSavvy product contains a Leap
Motion controller that is packaged in a custom case and translates
speech and signed motions to a tablet with text bubbles. Ryan Hait-Campbell
states that his product would not replace human translators but it
would improve one-on-one conversations. The MotionSavvy translator
is nameless and does not have a set release date as of the moment,
(“MotionSavvy”, 2014). When this device becomes available to the
public, it will be very useful to the deaf community.
Another tool for the deaf is Glide. Glide is a video app available
on several mobile platforms, including Apple iOS and Google Android.
Glide was founded on May 15, 2012 by Ari Roisman, Adam Korbl and
Johnathan Caras (“Glide”, 2014). Glide is the first video texting
app in the world. Glide’s beta version was launched on Google
Android devices in March 2013. It quickly climbed up the app store
rankings because of its easy-to-use design and invite system (Perez,
2013). On the Android Google Play app store, Glide has an average
of 4.3 stars out of 5 (“Glide - Video Texting”, 2014). On the Apple
App Store, Glide has 4.5 stars out of 5 (“Glide - Video Texting”,
2014). A video messaging app is perfect for the deaf. One can take
a video of signing and facial expressions and send it to another.
Newbie, a reviewer on Apple
iTunes states, “This is a lot
better than texting. Deaf people cannot express some things through
texting. Glide shows everything. I like how u can actually watch it
live and record right after” (“Glide – Video Texting”, 2014).
Motion recognition research and new creative ideas are examples of
technology helping the deaf community. We have already come a long
way since the days when hearing people needed to learn Sign Language
or have two pads of paper to communicate with deaf people.
Hopefully, in the future there will be more innovations to bridge
the gap between the deaf and hearing.
Works Cited
About Us.
http://www.leapmotion.com. Leap Motion Inc. Retrieved 1, August
2014: <https://www.leapmotion.com/company>
Glide.
http://crunchbase.com. Aol Tech. Retrieved 1, August 2014: <http://www.crunchbase.com/organization/glide>
Glide – Video Texting.
http://itunes.apple.com. Apple Incorporated. Retrieved 1, August
2014: <https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/glide-video-texting/id588199307?mt=8
>
Glide – Video Texting.
http://play.google.com.
Google. Retrieved 1, August 2013: <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.glidetalk.glideapp&referrer=af_tranid%3D3Q5ESNDBWMANRHNP%26pid%3Dglide_site>
MotionSavvy.
http://www.motionsavvy.com.
MotionSavvy Company. Retrieved 29, July 2014: <
http://www.motionsavvy.com/
>
Newbie. (2014, Jul. 12). Perfect communication for the deaf.
http://itunes.apple.com. Apple Incorporated. Retrieved 1, August
2014: <https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/glide-video-texting/id588199307?mt=8
>
Our Device.
http://www.leapmotion.com.
Leap Motion Incorporated. Retrieved 29, July 2014: <https://www.leapmotion.com/product
>
Perez, Sarah. (2013, Jul. 24). Video Texting App Glide going
“Viral,” Now ranked Just Ahead of Instagram in App Store. http://techcrunch.com.
Aol Tech. Retrieved 1, August. 2014: <http://techcrunch.com/2013/07/24/video-texting-app-glide-is-going-viral-now-ranked-just-ahead-of-instagram-in-app-store/ >
Pogue, David. (2013, Jul. 24). Leap Motion Controller, Great
Hardware in Search of Great Software.
http://www.nytimes.com.
New York Times Company. Retrieved 29, July. 2014: <http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/25/technology/personaltech/no-keyboard-and-now-no-touch-screen-either.html?_r=0 >
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