App helps blind people 'see' their surroundings

Microsoft Corporation has just introduced a free app for iPhone that can verbally describe objects and the surrounding environment to help the visually impaired recognize them.

Photo: The Verge

According to The Verge, Microsoft's Seeing AI application uses artificial intelligence (AI) technology to describe surrounding objects to people who cannot see.

Once downloaded and installed, users simply point the phone's camera lens at the person in front of them, and Seeing AI will immediately emit descriptive words that say who they are and how they are feeling.

Users can also point their phone camera at an object and the app will describe what it is. The AI ​​technology that powers all of these capabilities runs right on the smartphone, although some features require a cloud connection.

Microsoft introduced a beta version of Seeing AI at its Build conference in March last year. However, starting July 12, the app is available for free download in the US for iOS devices.

Microsoft has not yet announced when it will provide a version of the Seeing AI app for Android devices as well as in other countries.

In addition to helping users recognize people they've met before and guess a stranger's age and emotions, the Seeing AI app can also identify household products by scanning barcodes.

It also has the ability to read and scan documents and identify the denomination of US bills, a feature that is said to be particularly useful.

Because US dollars are actually quite similar in size and color despite their different denominations, it is almost impossible for visually impaired people to distinguish them. Accordingly, the Seeing AI application will help them a lot in this matter.

The basic functions of the application are performed directly on the device. Accordingly, in places without a stable Internet connection, users can still access the application quickly.

However, for experimental features like describing the entire surrounding scene or recognizing abbreviations, the app needs to connect to the cloud.

According to TTO