The challenge in the life of blind people, especially for children, is how they grow to be able to socialize with the surrounding environment.
Those who can see can quickly tell who is where, who is talking to whom, and other basic information that is useful for many social cues and behaviors.
But to those unable to see, clearly not knowing who had just entered a room or whether someone had just seen them to chat with them. This can lead to isolation and antisocial behavior, such as avoiding groups.
Launching from TechCrunch, Thursday (17/3/2022) Microsoft has also developed a software called PeopleLens that can help blind children learn the dangers of social cues in conversation.
PeopleLens is a research project at Microsoft that helps users stay aware of the location and identity of those around them, promoting richer and more spontaneous interactions.
Researchers at Microsoft wanted to see how technology can help children who are blind from birth access this information and use it in a way that makes sense to them. PeopleLens technology will be present in a suite of smart software tools running on a set of AR glasses.
Using the glasses' built-in sensors, the software can identify recognized faces and indicate their distance and position by providing audio cues such as clicks, bells, and spoken names.
For example, a small banging sound will be heard whenever the user's head is pointed at anyone, and if that person is within 10 feet or more, it will be followed by his or her name.
Then a set of rising tones helps the user direct their attention to the person's face. Another notification will sound if someone nearby sees the user, and so on.
This device does not mean a person has to wear it for life, but rather uses it as a learning aid to increase their awareness of other cues and how to respond to them in a prosocial way.
This helps a child build the same kinds of non-verbal skills that others learn with the benefit of sight.
Currently PeopleLens is still in the experimental stage, although the team has been working on it for quite some time. The next step is to assemble a group of students in the UK between the ages of 5 and 11 who can test the device over a longer period of time.