Banking
technology & the visually impaired people:
Visually impaired are the individuals who have visual
limits revealed in their daily lives in one in one way or another. They are among
other groups that make a total of 13 categories of disabilities. As human
beings, people who are visually impaired have the rights to hire the decent
jobs as other non - disabled people do. This can be done through UNIVERSAL
DESIGN technology.
“Universal design”
means the design of products, environments, programs and services to be usable
by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation
or specialized design. “Universal design” shall not exclude assistive devices
for particular groups of persons with disabilities where this is needed. Through
this technology, people with vision limits can have access to several
facilities like in banks.
How visually impaired
people can work in banks?
In Tanzania ,
the present banking technology benefits people who are not visually impaired.
For instance, the presence of devices that can help to detect the value of
paper money and coins may be of great deal in the inclusive era. It is
suggested that there should be an improvised electronic device which can be of
any shape and of any reasonable size to aid people who are visually impaired
for money services. For example the hand-watch and mobile phones can
scientifically be modified to assist people with visual impairment in
identifying money being used at particular time. This technology can probably
lead the blind people work in banks easily. Enable them in trade activities and
to reduce dependency for blind people make money transactions. To enable the
illiterate people count money. Other means to help people with vision restrictions
includes the raised dots in paper money and coins to guide them identify the
value of particular note and coin.
Sample Technology For Visually Impaired People in USA:
 |
| SayText |
SayText, developed by Norfello
Oy, scans text within any image, such as a medical
form or restaurant menu, and reads it aloud. Center the document under the
iPhone camera and double-tap the "Take Picture" button. Then raise it
slowly: a beep indicates that the entire document is in the phone's frame. The
app's Optical Character Recognition utility then scans the text. Tap the screen
for status updates. Once scanned, swipe right to hear the document read aloud.
 |
| COLOR IDENTIFIER |
GreenGar Studios' Color
Identifier uses the iPhone camera to identify and speak color names aloud.
Shades identified are specific to the point of annoyance (Paris Daisy, Moon
Mist) for some users. The company makes a free app called Color ID Free that
sticks to basic colors. Blind people will never wear mismatched socks or the
wrong color shirt again. An interesting offshoot is using the app to
distinguish shades of sky, enabling one to experience sunsets or gauge possible
weather changes.
 |
| Navigon MobileNavigator NA |
NAVIGON's MobileNavigator North America transforms the iPhone into a fully
functional mobile navigation system that uses the latest NAVTEQ map material.
The app offers text-to-speech voice guidance, enhanced pedestrian navigation, a
turn-by-turn RouteList, location sharing via email, and a Take Me Home
function. It also provides direct access and navigation to iPhone address book
contacts. Navigation is automatically resumed after an incoming phone call.
 |
| LookTel Money Reader |
The LookTelMoney Reader recognizes US currency in standard
denominations ($1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50, and $100 bills) enabling blind and
visually impaired people to quickly identify and count bills. Point the iPhone
camera at any US bill and LookTel's object recognition technology via VoiceOver
tells users the denomination in real time. Best to organize bills before
hitting the nightclub; the app doesn't work as well in low light.
Conclusion
I normally think and commit to memory about giant scientists like Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein, B. F. Skinner, and Charles Darwin. Francis Galton, Galileo Galilei, Gregor Mendel, Henry Ford, James Prescott Joule, Michael Faraday, Robert Boyle, Sigmund Freud, Alfred Binet, and many others. I wish they were of present generation they could have already done much scientific breakthrough to make sure that all people have equal access to this dynamic world. More than that, the world is still rich in men and women scientists. The only theme is the way they can think about human diversities and accord those diversities with the advantageous amenities.
References:
http://assistivetechnology.about.com/od/ATCAT6/tp/Top-10-Iphone-Apps-For-The-Visually-Impaired.htm
"THINK INCLUSIVELY ~~~ ACT INCLUSIVELY ~~~ CREATE AN INCLUSIVE NATION"
