EquiBraille

The Challenge

Visually impaired students face significant hurdles when it comes to learning in a live classroom environment. The traditional whiteboard-based teaching method poses a fundamental challenge, as it relies heavily on visual content that cannot be readily accessed by those with visual impairments. This exclusionary gap in education has persisted for far too long, limiting the potential of countless individuals.

Inspiration

Our mission is to revolutionize the educational experience for the 295 million visually impaired individuals worldwide by harnessing cutting-edge technology, including AI, handwritten text recognition, and 4G/5G connectivity. We are introducing EquiBraille, a groundbreaking solution designed to bridge the gap in learning accessibility and empower visually impaired students like never before.

Our Vision

EquiBraille is not just a product; it's a paradigm shift in education accessibility. Our vision is to provide visually impaired students with real-time access to the information shared in classrooms, ensuring they receive a comprehensive and inclusive education. To achieve this, we are integrating state-of-the-art technology into a singular, game-changing software and a device.

The Significance of AI

Artificial Intelligence is the backbone of EquiBraille, enabling us to make this vision a reality. Here's why AI is pivotal:

Real-time Transcription: AI swiftly recognizes and converts handwritten and digital text into Braille, ensuring students receive information concurrently with their peers.
Precision and Speed: EquiBraille operates with unparalleled speed and accuracy, making education accessible and efficient for visually impaired students.
Universal Accessibility: AI technology empowers EquiBraille to adapt to various educational settings, from classrooms to online learning platforms, ensuring inclusivity everywhere.
Empowerment: By providing real-time access to educational materials, EquiBraille empowers visually impaired individuals to engage actively in learning, boosting their confidence and academic success.

EquiBraille is poised to transform the lives of visually impaired students globally, ensuring they have equal access to education and the opportunities it brings. AI plays a pivotal role in making this vision a reality, breaking down barriers and paving the way for a more inclusive and equitable future in education.

What it does

At the core of EquiBraille is Artificial Intelligence, a technology that empowers us to transcend traditional boundaries. With AI-driven handwritten text recognition and translation capabilities, EquiBraille can transcribe and translate content from whiteboards, textbooks, and digital sources into Braille in real-time. The breakthrough lies in our ability to achieve this with a latency of fewer than 10 milliseconds, setting a precedent in accessibility technology.

How EquiBraille Works

EquiBraille consists of a braille board housing a grid of small pins that can be raised and lowered to form Braille characters. Users can effortlessly read the Braille output by running their fingers over the top of the box. EquiBraille's integrated camera captures text in real-time and converts it into Braille, providing instantaneous access to classroom lectures, e-books, websites, and digital text.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

Recognized as UN Fellow
Won ASU Digital Equity Jam
Accepted into the Clinton Global Initiative
Won Verizon Forward for Good Challenge
Accepted in Full-time summer accelerator program with VentureWell
Accepted in Full-time winter accelerator program with VentureWell
Patent Pending
Recognized by media, ASU, Verizon, AWS, VentureWell, Clinton Global Initiative, HBCU & UNCF

What we learned

Based on more than 160 customer discovery interviews conducted:

Parent: Unfamiliarity with braille leads parents to feel a language barrier while teaching their children. Provider: Universities need a way to include visuallly impaired student in the classroom and follow the same quality and curriculum. Payer: The visually impaired students would like to engage better in classrooms.

What's next for EquiBraille

Beta Test: October 2023
Soft Launch at ASU: December 2023
Partnership with Lighthouse Chicago: January 2023

Future Ecosystem

Equi-stick: A cane that detects objects and helps in navigation
Equi-glasses : A device that can process sensory and image data to render artificial image
Equi-glove: A glove that can sense and relay information about the objects a person is about to touch or is in their proximity