kestrell

This is a great little article on the history of optical chracter recognition (OCR) for the blind, including how it took forty years for it to be anything close to affordable, which many contend it still isn't for many visually impaired people
https://accessibility-insights.com/2021/11/06/live-text-new-in-ios-15-is-amazing-but-it-took-us-45-years-of-technical-advancements-to-get-there/

I attended the first Sight Tech Global Virtual Conference last December, and I learned so much! Topics not only included technology, but disability rights and how AI bias affects visually impaired people. I encourage anyone who wants to learn about the newest technologies for visually impaired people to register for this conference, especially since it's free!

Posted to TechCrunch
https://techcrunch.com/2021/07/15/announcing-sight-tech-global-2021/

Shortly after the first Sight Tech Global event, in December last year, Apple and Microsoft announced remarkable new features for mobile phones. Anyone could point the phone camera at a scene and request a "scene description." In a flash, a cloud-based, computer vision AI determined what was in the scene and a machine-voice read the information.

Learning that "a room contains three chairs and a table" might not seem like a big advance for the sighted, but for blind or visually impaired people, the new feature was a notable milestone for accessibility technology: An affordable, portable and nearly universal device could now "see" on behalf of just about anyone.

Technologies like scene description will be on the agenda at the second annual Sight Tech Global event, December 1-2, 2021. The free, sponsor-supported, virtual and global event will convene many of the world's top technologists, researchers, advocates and founders to discuss how rapid advances in technology, many centered on AI, are altering — both improving and complicating — accessibility for people with sight loss.

Register today — it's free.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfberR7NW3F74cBNleiOVauGQ8wrSV0FcZqf1HH5X60mUrS6Q/viewform?fbzx=4093129549110261409

Recognizing Text, Currency, Screenshots and More with Seeing AI
Saturday November 21, 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM Eastern

Description

Learn about this versatile computer vision tool for iOS. We'll explore channels for recognizing short text like envelopes and kitchen items, full documents, handwriting, scenes, color, light level and more. We'll also explore how to use Seeing AI to get visual descriptions for photos on your phone and on social media.

For many Seeing AI beginners, it can be a challenge to get accurate results when working with the iPhone's camera. We'll go over some strategies and techniques for making sure your camera is stable and the object you want to see is fully in view.

Anyone is welcome! Our remote tech and culture programs are an evolution of the in -person and hybrid workshops hosted at the Andrew Heiskell Braille and Talking Book Library. Whether you're blind, sighted, or somewhere in between, in New York City or on the other side of the world, we welcome you for fellowship, learning and dialog.
so we know how many people to expect.
To join our technology and Braille team's event announcement list, just email heiskelltech+subscribe@googlegroups.com - we'll let you know about all the other remote programming we offer.

To learn more about us or suggest a workshop, or to volunteer your time, contact our tech coordinator: chanceyfleet@nypl.org

To support open discussion and patron privacy, our workshops are never recorded.

Time
Nov 21, 2020 02:00 PM in Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Register at
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMldu6uqzgqHtwyzQrucNhPJmzSk50HDq9Z

1. Microsoft Soundscape
Microsoft Soundscape is a research project that explores the use of innovative audio-based technology to enable people, particularly those with blindness or low vision, to build a richer awareness of their surroundings, thus becoming more confident and empowered to get around. Unlike step-by-step navigation apps, Soundscape uses 3D audio cues to enrich ambient awareness and provide a new way to relate to the environment. It allows you to build a mental map and make personal route choices while being more comfortable within unfamiliar spaces.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/product/soundscape/
Traveling to Essential Services using Microsoft Soundscape
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/group/enable/articles/travelling-to-essential-services-using-microsoft-soundscape/
Annotating and sharing markers on Microsoft Soundscape
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/group/enable/articles/annotating-and-sharing-markers-with-family-and-friends-through-microsoft-soundscape/#main
Getting FreshAir with Microsoft Soundscape
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/group/enable/articles/getting-fresh-air-with-microsoft-soundscape/

2. Seeing AI app by Microsoft
Multi-purpose app which assists visually impaired to scan and recognize docs, recognize currency, identify objects in a picture, and more
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/ai/seeing-ai
Hadley School for the Blind instructional video on using Seeing AI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRFGU2os7Og

3. The BARD mobile app from National Library Service has recently been updated
More information on the Eyes on Success podcast
https://eyesonsuccess.net/
BARD mobile User Guide
https://nlsbard.loc.gov/apidocs/BARDMobile.userguide.iOS.1.2.html

4. Webinar: A Beginner's Guide to Google Docs and Calender with Jaws
by the Maryland State Library for the Blind Technology Group
Saturday, 13 June 2020 at 14:00 GMT
You can find schedule info along with recordings of past webinars here
https://www.marylandlibraries.org/Pages/Technology%20User%20Group.aspx

5. Pinning and unpinning apps on the Start menu using a screen reader
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OBdN3qWLz8&list=PLeXWOOlSQiVTecgn86zE0CO-yxzTXue1W
More helpful videos for blind screen reader users by Catch These Words
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrx961Vuddmymk1rhlKyA8g

Also, there is a Voice Dream Reader app for Android. Interesting that this line of apps was not originally designed to be accessible, it was just such a good design that visually impaired users could use it.
https://www.afb.org/aw/20/5/16444

Entries tagged with ocr

Live Text on iOS 15 and the history of OCR

Announcing Sight Tech Global 2021

Exploring Microsoft's free Seeing AI app

More tech resources for visually impaired users

Article on new Voice Dream Scanner app for iOS

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