Assistive Technology that Aids the Blind or Visually Impaired

Posted by New York Able News written by Jeremy Morak and Monica Torres

Assistive technology that aids individuals who are blind or visually impaired should be an assistant to help make daily tasks, work and entertainment easier and more pleasurable. Technology, in any form, from low-tech to high-tech, should work for each person. It should be a personal assistant whose only function is to help improve the life of its user.

However, it can be challenging for some to overcome the intimidation factor associated with technology. Fears stemming from uncertainty or lack of confidence can make a person reluctant to explore helpful options.

Monica Torres, a Vision Rehabilitation Instructor at Lighthouse Guild, has been helping her clients overcome these hurdles by showing how technology can work for them, rather than the other way around.

The following tips and techniques are often part of Torres’ rehabilitation training she provides her clients.

Your Mobile Device Can Be Your Best Friend

A lot of people with visual impairment use some type of mobile phone but do not know all of the ways it can help. There are simple free apps, such as Seeing AI or Lookout by Google, that offer magnification, object detection, document scanning and readout and can even help identify currency denominations. In addition to free apps, many phones come pre-programmed with accessibility features, such as enlarging font size, magnification, inverting text and background colors, increasing contrast and brightness and voice command capabilities.

Lighthouse Guild offers free virtual and in-person workshops that help mobile device users practice using features and apps. More information about the workshops can be found at www.lighthouseguild.org.

Smart Home Assistants

Having some form of smart home tech in 2023 is becoming much more common, whether using Siri, Alexa or Google. These voice-activated assistants are great for setting alarms or getting the news, but for someone with low or no vision, they can make tasks more manageable.

For example, these interactive voice assistants can dictate a full recipe while a person is preparing a meal to eliminate the need to read a recipe from a book with a small text size. The same virtual assistant can also be prompted to set multiple alarms during the cooking process.

Mental Focus Is Key

For everyone, but especially for people who are visually impaired, perseverance goes a long way when learning to use new forms of technology. Practice and repetition can seem daunting initially, but staying focused on the end goal helps to overcome early frustrations.

Mastering a new tool doesn’t happen overnight. Being patient is key. Giving the learning process time and trying not to be discouraged if a problem arises will help new users benefit from what the technology offers them.

These are all ways to help someone be the boss of any technology they decide to try. It is also important to remember that there are resources available that can help during the process.

The resources are out there, whether it’s from a family member, friend, trained rehabilitation specialist or occupational therapist. Motivation to seek help is often just as important as completing a task. Some other fantastic vision rehabilitation resources are Hadley and Ophthalmic Edge.

Jeremy Morak is a Marketing Manager at Lighthouse Guild. Monica Torres is a Vision Rehabilitation Instructor at Lighthouse Guild.