Have you ever wondered how you can make a difference in someone’s life while continuing with your own busy schedule?
A Danish company attended a tech conference called “Startup Weekend,” and they ended up winning the prize for the most innovative idea: an app called Be My Eyes. This smartphone app connects blind people with sighted people through the video camera on an iPhone so that a sighted person can answer simple questions for the blind.
For instance, a blind person cannot see the expiration date on milk. They can simply open the Be My Eyes app, which then sends a push notification to a preregistered sighted person through the Be My Eyes app on their own phone. The blind person then aims their smartphone camera at the milk container so that the sighted person can see it, and the sighted person quickly answers the question of whether or not the milk is expired.
A simple task like this is so fast and easy for the sighted, yet it is so difficult for the blind; so, an app like this is groundbreaking. If the app rings on a sighted person’s phone while they are not available, it then goes on to another preregistered person. Everyday struggles for a blind person can be resolved very quickly with a little bit of help.
Be My Eyes is currently available in ten languages so even more people can benefit from it. Be My Eyes is a nonprofit organization, so the app is free. Right now it is only available on Apple products because iPhones and iPads have voice-over programs to make it easier for blind people to use; however, the Android app will be available soon.
Be My Eyes is an important, innovative way to make the online community more friendly to both the sighted and the blind. Download it today, and lend your eyes!