How are AI Image Translators Helping Visually Impaired People?
The above picture shows a robotic hand with writing that says "How are AI Image Translators Helping Visually Impaired People?"
Visual
impairment is a decrease in the ability to see to a certain degree. This causes vision-related
problems that are not fixable by glasses, contact lenses, or surgery.
People with low vision may have blurred vision, blind
spots, or poor night vision. They may have difficulty with normal daily tasks like reading a newspaper, walking, etc.
Is there any way to make reading possible for visually impaired people? Can they translate receipts, labels, or mail in
desired languages? The answer is yes. Read on to learn!
How Can Visually Impaired
People Read?
Visually impaired people primarily read via
the Braille writing method.
Braille is a writing system for blind people that consists of characters
represented by patterns of raised dots. These dots are felt by the fingertips
to read the text.
While Braille can help read books, what about
the receipts, package labels, mail, or other documents printed in normal
alphabets?
Here come Optical
Character Recognition (OCR) Readers. These are digital apps or tools that
use OCR technology to translate text and/or read
it aloud for visually impaired people.
These digital entities can be used on any
smart device, such as mobile devices and desktops.
Now is the time to learn how to translate and
listen to any piece of writing.
How Do AI Image Translators
Help Visually Impaired People?
AI
image translators are tools designed to extract and
translate text from images.
Although they don’t read the text aloud, they
significantly support visually impaired individuals to translate and understand any text. This way, these people can
access and understand information given in any language.
For example, Image Translator by Imagetotext.info is one such translator.
A visually impaired person can take a picture
of a document, sign, or menu and submit it to the tool. The AI image translator
extracts and translates the text into their desired language.
Interestingly, this tool supports 100+ global languages. This is
especially helpful for people who interact in multilingual environments. They
can capture and translate text from a foreign language into their native
language for further processing.
Although the tools don't read the text aloud, they
are key for text translation.
After all, we can use the text readers app
later to do this ‘read aloud’ task.
This process helps visually impaired individuals understand content from
different languages quickly.
That said, here is a reliable text reader
application to listen to the text.
KNFB Reader - An App to
Listen to Text
The KNFB
Reader is an innovative mobile app to help low-vision, blind, and
print-disabled people convert text to speech. This way, the people who struggle
with reading can listen to the text being pronounced and understand it.
This app was developed by the National
Federation of the Blind and Sensotec NV. It is available on iOS, Android, and Windows 10
devices.
Here are the links to download it:
Users can use this app to read everyday items like mail, receipts, menus, and even complex
documents without needing assistance from someone else.
It brings a sense of freedom and privacy when
handling personal documents like medical reports, tax papers, bills, or
whatever.
KNFB Reader is also simple to use. Once you download and install the app on your
device, you only need to take a photo of the printed text you want to read.
The app processes the image in seconds and
either reads the text aloud or converts it into Braille, which can be read on a
refreshable Braille display.
Users can even upload translated images from
the gallery into this tool, and this app will read the entire script for you.
No need to sit and wait for someone else to read for you!
Users can also save these documents for later,
export them, or share them if needed.
The KNFB Reader can handle a wide range of printed materials, including:
●
Receipts and package labels
●
Product information and
nutritional facts
●
Books, manuals, and longer
documents
●
Private papers like medical forms
and mortgage documents
●
Text on computer or tablet screens
●
eBooks and ePub format files
The app includes several innovative features
to improve the experience.
Text detection shows where the text is located
on a page, making it easier to capture. The tilt and viewfinder assist ensure
that you take a clear, full-page photo.
Conclusion
AI image translators play a key role in
helping visually impaired individuals access and understand text in different
languages.
These tools allow users to capture and
translate text from documents, signs, and menus into their preferred language.
While they don't read text aloud, they provide an important step in making
information more accessible.
When combined with text reader apps like the
KNFB Reader, visually impaired users can listen to translated content.