Visually impaired people often rely on touch to travel. Under the epidemic, touching the practice will increase the risk of infection. At the same time, it will affect the daily life of the visually impaired elderly and the visually impaired, and some people even choose to go out less.
After discovering this situation, Turzo and Lamia, the founders of the start-up company Widdy Labs, came up with the idea of making good use of technology to allow visually impaired people to identify the text, type and distance on various objects through the lens and AI at low cost, and use the voice to read and identify the content. , act as eyes for the visually impaired and help them return to normal life.
The founders of Weddy Labs, Turzo (middle) and Lamia (left), are both Bangladeshis and both were born and raised in Hong Kong.
(Photo by Liang Pengwei)
Hong Kong-raised Bangladeshi volunteers to send epidemic prevention kits, feeling the suffering of visually impaired people
The founders of Vidi Labs, Turzo and Lamia, are both Bangladeshis and both were born and raised in Hong Kong.
In the early days of the outbreak, Lamia, who had the habit of volunteering, went to Tin Shui Wai and Yuen Long to help non-profit organizations distribute epidemic prevention kits.
Among them, many elderly and visually impaired people told Lamia that they were affected by the epidemic and could not rely on their sense of touch to cope with daily life as before, and they were worried about accidentally contracting the epidemic when they went out.
Lamia recalled that under the epidemic prevention policy at that time, some frontline personnel, such as ambulance and non-profit-making organizations, only provided limited services, which made their situation even more severe, and they may not be able to receive timely assistance when in difficulty.
In the early days of the outbreak, Lamia, who had the habit of volunteering, went to Tin Shui Wai and Yuen Long to help non-profit organizations distribute epidemic prevention kits.
Among them, many elderly and visually impaired people told Lamia that they were affected by the epidemic and could not rely on their sense of touch to cope with their daily life as before, and they were worried about accidentally contracting the disease when they went out.
(Photo by Liang Pengwei)
Grandfather has vision problems, no one reads newspapers on his behalf, loses access to information
On the other hand, Turzo's grandfather in Bangladesh also has vision problems.
Turzo said his grandfather had a habit of reading newspapers before the pandemic.
At that time, my grandfather's friends would come to the house every day to read the newspaper content to him.
However, after the outbreak of the epidemic, due to social distancing restrictions, friends stopped visiting grandfather's house, which not only made grandfather feel lonely, but also lost access to daily current affairs: "Grandfather is not happy, and his mental state is not as good as before. The tool can read and listen to the (newspaper), and understand the surrounding things.” Turzo, an engineer, thought about using artificial intelligence and existing technology to help visually impaired people like his grandfather, and he hit it off with Lamia, who had the same idea. , and set up the Weidi laboratory in 2021.
Turzo's grandfather in Bangladesh also had vision problems.
Turzo said his grandfather had a habit of reading newspapers before the pandemic.
At that time, my grandfather's friends would come to the house every day to read the newspaper content to him.
However, after the outbreak of the epidemic, due to social distancing restrictions, friends stopped visiting my grandfather's house, which not only made my grandfather feel lonely, but also lost access to daily current affairs.
(Photo by Liang Pengwei)
Immediately after the establishment of Widdy Labs, Turzo developed Seekr, while Lamia focused on connecting various parties such as non-profit organizations and governments.
Turzo said it was difficult to gain the trust of others when developing Seekr at first, because he was studying for a master's degree, and Lamia took an additional degree program after completing a university degree.
When they promote Seekr, they are often seen as a student research project.
Because of their student status, they don't have much savings, so funding is also a major issue in the development of Seekr.
Turzo developed Seekr immediately after Widdy Labs was established, while Lamia focused on connecting various parties such as non-profit organizations and governments.
Turzo said that the initial development of Seekr was difficult to gain the trust of others, because he was studying for a master's degree, and Lamia completed a university degree and then took another degree program. When promoting Seekr, it was often regarded as a student's research project.
(Photo by Liang Pengwei)
Auxiliary devices act as the eyes of the visually impaired to identify the types of objects in front of them in real time
Later, with the launch of the first version of Seekr, it was gradually supported by people from all walks of life after the physical objects were available. They also actively participated in various entrepreneurial competitions to obtain funds.
Turzo believes that he has benefited a lot from the Hong Kong Social Enterprise Challenge.
"The criticisms and suggestions from the judges can make us think about more developments. Seekr itself is only designed for daily use by visually impaired people. 𠵱The family will consider whether they will add some entertainment elements to make Seekr more functional."
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With the efforts of the research team, Seekr has been developed to the third version, which is now planned to be launched in the market by the end of the year.
The third version of the Seekr weighs only 150 grams and includes a magnetic clasp inside, allowing users to securely fasten it to clothing.
Seekr has only two buttons on the whole machine. First push the button on the side up, and then press the button behind the lens to identify the text, type and distance of the object in front for them in real time, and the mobile phone app will send out the identification result aloud. .
Seekr needs to be used with a Bluetooth-linked mobile app, and various settings can also be made inside.
The third version of the Seekr lasts 4 to 6 hours on a charge.
Turzo pointed out that Seekr can be used with different mobile phone systems for visually impaired persons. During the process, he has also found different visually impaired persons to try it out. After getting their real sense of use, he will improve it.
For example, the first version of the Seekr was hung with a rope around the user's neck. Later, the visually impaired reported that the Seekr would sway unsteadily. It is recommended to use a magnetic buckle as a fixation to greatly increase its stability.
Currently, the final version of Seekr is expected to be available in the market by the end of the year.
Turzo emphasized that Seekr will be priced at a price that visually impaired people can afford, and that waterproof and safety models will be added at that time to ensure that visually impaired people can use it with peace of mind.
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