The Good Vibes App: The first, two-way communication app
for the deafblind.
Entry Description:
For the first time in human history,
the deafblind have a two-way communication tool. Available in the form a mobile
app, Good Vibes is harnessing the power of the smartphone to empower the
deafblind community across the world.
Brief:
95% of all learning happens from seeing
and hearing. As the deafblind can neither see nor hear, they live life in a
void. While Braille helps them read and learn about the world around them, it
is not a two-way communication language like talking, chatting or even sign
language. How can we overcome these limitations by using technology?
Solution:
A mobile app made for the deafblind. Since the deafblind deciphered all things by touching & feeling
them, we needed a technology or medium that had tactile feedback at the core of
it. And it had to be easily available, affordable, and dependable. We found all
those qualities in the ubiquitous smartphone. We simply found a way to convert
English alphabets into tactile inputs (tap/long press) and back into tactile
outputs (distinct vibrations).
After interacting with the
deafblind and their caregivers, we knew we had our task cut out. We had to
design a user experience that replicates ‘touch & feel’ - the only form of
two-way communication used by them. With the Good Vibes app, we dug deep and
explored a whole new dimension of app design: one that works for those can’t
see nor hear. The result is ‘the invisible UI’ – probably the first of its
kind. And it works like magic.
App launched on: 15th January 2018
Primary Medium: Mobile App, Google PlayStore
www.goodvibesapp.org