Samsung’s solutions for deaf-blind & low vision people promise to be a game changer

Tech giant Samsung has launched two solutions called Good Vibes and Relumino that will provide people who are deaf-blind and have low vision communicate better.

Two new solutions from South Korean tech giant Samsung for the Indian market are here. One, Good Vibes enables people who are deaf-blind communicate better, and two, Relumino, which helps people with low vision see better.

We are happy we were able to develop technologies such as Good Vibes and Relumino 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. – Peter Rhee, Corporate Vice President, Samsung India

Good Vibes app uses Morse code to convert vibrations into text or voice and vice-versa. It comes with two user interfaces (UI). One interface has an invisible UI for deaf-blind people, which uses vibrations, taps and gestures. The other has a visible UI, a standard chat interface, for the caregiver.

With the deaf-blind interface, a person uses a combination of dots and dashes to send their messages. The standard interface allows users to type or use voice to send messages to the deaf-blind user. The text or voice is received as vibrations in Morse code that they can interpret.

Good Vibes app can be downloaded from the Samsung Galaxy Store. It will be made Google Play Store for all other Android smartphone users soon, says Samsung. Samsung has partnered with the NGO Sense India to take the Good Vibes app to the deaf-blind community across the country.

A visual aid application for people with low vision, Relumino enables them to see images clearer by magnifying and minimising images, highlighting the image outline, adjusting colour contrast and brightness, and reversing colour.
Samsung partnered with the National Association for the Blind (NAB) Delhi to develop the app. It will provide Samsung Gear VR and Galaxy Note ( smartphones to NAB Delhi, and will also provide training on how to use them.

“We helped Samsung with testing the apps”, says Prashant Ranjan Verma, General Secretary, NAB. “We have a deaf-blind unit here and the Samsung team has been working with them for some months now testing the app. This is a useful tool for deaf-blind people to communicate with as they can understand using mobile vibrations”.

Verma believes Good Vibes will be a game changer for the community. “Even within NAB where we have so many blind people, we find ourselves helpless in communicating with people who are deaf-blind. As a result they are left out. This will help a lot. Once they get trained in using them, this will be very beneficial”.

NAB will use the solution in classrooms where students with low vision using these devices will be able to see better, helping them improve their learning abilities.