BACKGROUND:
Access to content is
very difficult for the 285 million blind and visually impaired people
worldwide: Only 3% of all digital text content is available in Braille, because
material is expensive and translation requires human understanding, which makes
it not profitable for publishers in most cases. There is no alternative to
Braille, especially for education: 90% of people who can’t read Braille are
unemployed.
Braille translation
is highly complex: Grade 2 Braille – the standard for longer text – relies
heavily on contractions. This leads to ambiguity, where exact meaning depends
on context. So far, even the best software requires additional human input.
IDEA:
Dot Mini. The first
smart media device for the visually impaired. It makes any digital text content
accessible through the innovative Dot Translation Engine based on AI.
EXECUTION:
The Dot Translation
Engine can automatically convert any digital text into Grade 2 Braille.
The 16 Cell Active
Braille Display is built with the innovative (70 patents) Dot Technology,
uniquely based on magnetism, which reduces size, weight, power consumption and
price by up to ten times.
Dot Mini can access
digital text files from online libraries and websites, local and network
storage.
Full audio support
with speaker, headphones and microphone allows multisensory experiences like
karaoke and even experiencing movies.
Intuitive control
elements (directional pad, select, menu, scroll buttons) and voice recognition
make interactive applications like text editing, calculation and even games
possible.
Various interfaces:
USB, Micro USB, Micro HDMI, SD Card, WiFi and Bluetooth.
Comfortably portable:
158x108x18mm / 256g.
RESULT:
Ongoing closed beta
phase and rollout of first 1000 units in Kenya and India.
200,000 books
directly available through partnerships with big content platforms (Rakuten
Kobo, Yes24).
40,000 units are
pre-ordered for global launch in late 2018.