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Me, Myself & Eye
Background & Motivation
Over the years, technology has advanced in ways that were once unimaginable, from sending humans to the moon to creating miniature mobile devices for various purposes. One question that often arises is how this technology can be used to benefit people with physical disabilities, such as blindness, paralysis, and deafness. One particularly interesting aspect is how it can assist individuals who are blind or visually impaired.
TimeLine
4 months
Roles
User Research, Prototyping, Visual Design, App Development
Tools
Figma, Adobe Illustrator, Android Studio with Java
Problem
The issue of visually impaired individuals being involved in accidents is a growing concern. It can be burdensome for a visually impaired person to constantly rely on someone else to perform everyday tasks, and that person may not always be available. Additionally, blind people often use walking sticks to assist them in daily life. However
"What if their walking stick could talk and provide additional support?"
Solution
Me, Myself, and Eye is a mobile app designed to help blind or visually impaired individuals navigate around simple obstacles and get from one point to another. The key feature of this app is a Voice Assistant that acts as a talking walking stick.
The goal with this app is to empower blind and visually impaired individuals to live more independently and confidently by giving them access to advanced technology that can assist them in their daily lives.
Some of the capabilities of this app will be able to:
Existing Solutions
I identified four of the most commonly used apps that provide solutions for blind and visually impaired individuals
Based on my research, I brainstormed ways to enhance app. I incorporated these ideas and combined them with the features of the other apps I identified. The result is an app that is able to perform a wide range of tasks, rather than just focusing on a single aspect. This makes Me, Myself, and Eye unique and more comprehensive in its ability to assist blind and visually impaired individuals
Empathy Map
I conducted a physical study at a school for the blind to gather firsthand insights and observations, which I used to create an empathy map. This helped me gain a deeper understanding of our target audience and design the app to meet their needs by staying focused on our users and maintaining their perspective throughout development
User Flow
To accommodate users with vision problems, it was important to keep the app simple and easy to use. It was necessary to keep the app as simple as possible
Final Prototype
Introduction
To register, the user opens the app and follows the prompts to enter their name and record their voice
Voice Command Activity
On the main page, the user is presented with basic instructions on how to use the app. They can either long press the button or shake their device to initiate speaking
Color Identification
The user can request that the voice assistant identify a color by saying "Help me identify this color". The assistant will then activate the camera, recognize the speech, and announce the identified color
Obstacle Detection
The camera is able to identify obstacles in the user's environment, allowing them to move around freely. When an obstacle is detected, the app alerts the user with the message "Careful!"
Object Recognition
The camera is able to recognize objects in the user's environment. It can identify both obstacles and other objects as directed by the user.
Text Reader
"The app allows the user to scan a document with the camera and have the words extracted and read out loud. The user can control the audio playback and adjust the font size as needed.
Settings
Users can customize their app experience through its settings. They can edit their name, choose their preferred voice and language, adjust voice speed, volume, and toggle the shake to speak mode. The dark mode feature can be disabled, and users can also manage flashlight and screen awake settings.
Implementation
I built the Android version of Me, Myself & Eye from scratch using Android Studio with Java.
It is currently under the testing stage!
Want to know more? Feel free to reach out to me.
Reflection
What I would do better is to seek more feedback from visually impaired individuals and conduct more interviews to gather a deeper understanding of their struggles. Working on this project has given me a greater appreciation for the challenges faced by people with disabilities and has reinforced my belief that everyone deserves to be treated with respect and equality.
I was inspired to create this app as a way to show my support and to improve the lives of visually impaired individuals. It has been a rewarding experience that has opened my eyes to the unique needs and experiences of this community.