Inspiration
Our inspiration stems from the belief that every individual, regardless of their visual capabilities, deserves to experience and interact with the world fully and independently. Recognizing the vast spectrum of visual experiences, we are driven by the mission to bridge the perceptual gap between the visually impaired and the sighted, fostering empathy and inclusivity in every space we inhabit.
What it does
Our product, VisInclude, enables designers, architects, developers, and even friends and family, to step into the world of the visually impaired. It offers an immersive experience that simulates various degrees of visual impairment, providing an authentic understanding of the challenges and needs. This profound insight empowers creators and influencers to design environments, products, and services that are not just accessible but truly inclusive, ensuring every space is a place where everyone feels understood, valued, and connected.
How we built it
- We used Unity, Meta presence platform, and XR interaction tool kit to build our prototype. We used simple toggle and button interactions and recreated the some of the visual impairment conditions for the prototype. For the presentation purposes we used additional graphic tools such as Adobe Illustrator, After Effects, Premier Pro.
Challenges we ran into
- All of us are abled people, so we don't know what it's like to be visually impaired. This made it difficult to understand the scenarios and use-cases from the customer point of view
- We faced technical issues with unity software while integrating with VR headsets
- It was difficult to build certain simulations of visual impairments on unity. For example, we couldn't implement a blur effect to simulate cerebral visual impairment
Accomplishments that we're proud of
- It was a first time for many of us to use XR technologies. So, we are proud of building something meaningful by learning the technologies in a short period of time.
- We are proud of attempting to solve a real world issue which could have a profound social impact for the visually impaired population
What we learned
- We learnt about different types of visual impairments people experience. We also had the chance to interact with Chris McNally who helped us understand the world from his vision point of view.
- On the technical side, we learnt to work with Unity tools, Meta presence platform, integration of various XR technologies, and also design tools like after effects and illustrator.
- We've learned how to identify a problem and transform it into an entrepreneurial opportunity, crafting a startup idea and developing a product to solve that problem
What's next for Visclude
- Customization & Personalization: Integrate advanced AI features to tailor the VR experience to various types of visual impairments more accurately.
- Strategic Partnerships: Collaborate with architectural firms, urban planners, and educational institutions to embed Visclude in the standard design and development workflow.
- Community Engagement: Launch community programs to gather feedback from visually impaired individuals, ensuring that Visclude evolves as a user-centric tool.
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