Samsung has announced that it has developed two new solutions – Good Vibes and Relúmĭno, aimed to improve communications with the Deafblind and Vision Impaired users. The Good Vibes App can now be download from the Samsung Galaxy Store and will soon be available on the Google Play Store for use on any Android phone.
Samsung’s Good Vibes application has been designed to help deafblind users have two-way communication with their caregivers and loved ones. The app uses Morse code to convert vibrations into text or voice and vice-versa.
Good Vibes comes with two user interfaces – one with an invisible UI for use by the deafblind, the other with a visible UI which shows a standard chat interface for the caregiver. With the deafblind interface, the user will be able to use a combination of dots and dashes to send their messages. The standard UI allows users to type their message or use voice message to send to the deafblind.
Samsung has also developed Relúmĭno which is a visual aid application for people with low vision. Made as part of Samsung’s C-Lab program, Relúmĭno enables users to see images more clearly by magnifying and minimising images, highlighting the image outline, adjusting colour contrast and brightness and reversing colour.
The company has also partnered with Sense India to improve the lives of the deafblind in India. Samsung has conducted training workshops for Sense India educators and deafblind individuals in Bengaluru and Delhi. It also offers Galaxy A20 smartphones with pre-installed Good Vibes app for distribution to deafblind and their caregivers.
Samsung has also collaborated with the National Association for the Blind (NAB) Delhi for Relúmĭno. The company is providing the Gear VR and Galaxy Note9 smartphones to NAB Delhi to help students with low vision see better and improve their learning abilities.
Speaking about the development, Samsung India Corporate VP, Peter Rhee said “Samsung uses both its innovation and global network to create positive change, responding to people’s needs around the world and helping them to live better lives, with more choice, freedom and greater possibilities. We are happy we were able to develop technologies such as Good Vibes and Relúmĭno that will help improve quality of life of the deafblind and people with low vision, allowing them to become more aware of the world around them and better integrated with society”.
Sense India Advocacy and Networks Head, Parag Namdeo said “Good Vibes is going to create a platform where our society will be able to communicate with deafblind people using smartphones. Samsung is doing exactly what it believes in ‘Do What You Can’t’. We are glad to see Samsung leveraging its technology prowess to build meaningful solutions that help society. At Sense India, we have been working with deafblind for their betterment and development through comprehensive training. Good Vibes will help them connect with a larger number of people around them, something they were unable to do so far”.
Nargis Shaikh, mother of Waqar Shaikh, a deafblind student using Good Vibes said “This app is useful for my son Waqar and he is using it independently now. Waqar’s dream is to become a teacher and this app may help him to communicate and understand another person (his students), which will support him in daily living and learning”.