Impacting millions of Americans, vision loss can be as varied as the individuals who experience it – from simply needing to don a pair of reading glasses to skim through the morning newspaper, to total blindness. And it’s a lot more prevalent in older adults, with one out of every three seniors over age 65 having some type of eye disease that impacts vision, like glaucoma, cataracts, macular degeneration, as well as others. Thankfully, much like so many other challenging conditions, technology continues to explode with options to improve standard of living for all those experiencing vision problems. Simply take a look at a few of the vision enhancement tools which are already available:
- Be My Eyes. This incredible app links sighted volunteers with those with low vision or blindness, and actually allows them to see, through the individual’s phone, all sorts of immediate needs – such as checking expiration dates of food or confirming that an outfit matches. And, “It’s being used for some amazing things,” according to Alexander Jensen, Be My Eyes’ Community Director. “We received a message from a woman who said she used a Be My Eyes volunteer to check on her wedding gown for any stains before the ceremony started.”
- Seeing AI. A more recently released app, Seeing AI also utilizes a sight-impaired person’s phone, allowing for identification of a person to whom the camera is directed, including recognition of the person’s facial expressions to pick up on feelings and mood. It also can scan barcodes to identify items (with an audible alert as soon as the camera is near to a barcode), verify denominations of currency, and a wide variety of other functions, even without an Internet connection.
- RoboCane. This is certainly no ordinary white cane! Designed with a computer, microphone and 3-D camera, RoboCane can identify obstacles and provide voice prompts to let a user know what’s ahead. It can also guide its user through usage of a motor-driven roller tip once floor plans of a planned route are loaded into its computer, and can also take verbal commands from the user and provide audio feedback through a wireless earpiece.
JFS Care, provider of home care in Santa Monica and the surrounding areas, can help improve total wellbeing for those with vision loss through safe, trusted transportation and accompaniment to outings, assistance with household chores and personal care tasks, and much more. Contact us today at (213) 383-2273 for a free in-home consultation to find out more! Click here to view our full service area.