Join Jessica, Joel, and Hugo for another exciting VIP! This week, our team explore everything from fashionista Alexa, to Google’s latest venture which might just allow you to use that smart phone with greasy hands. Here’s a taste of what’s coming in this exciting episode!
How To Make Free Voice Calls From Your Amazon Echo
With the launch of the Echo Show, Amazon has announced a new calling and messaging feature that will let you make and receive calls, as well as send messages between Echo devices and the Amazon Alexa app for iOS and Android.
Robot Performs First Ever Operation Inside a Human Eye
At the 2017 Annual Meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology in Baltimore, Maryland, researchers have presented the results of a study using remotely operated robots to perform eye operations. These robots were able to produce better results than traditional methods.
Blindpad Project Provides a New Navigational Aid for the Blind
Researchers at the EPFL in Switzerland have developed a new device to aid the visually impaired with mobility and the understanding of visual concepts such as maps and geometric shapes. The Blindpad as it is known, uses a system of tiny coils and magnets to raise pins on the device and help a visually impaired person create a mental map of where they are going. The device is 12 cm by 15 cm and is meant to be used as a navigational aid along with a white cane.
CityMapper to Test Smart Bus System in London
CityMapper, a transit planning and navigation app for iOS, Android and the web, has partnered with the city of London to create a Smart Bus system. Some of the buses will be smaller, for the tighter places, others will be the larger city buses you’re used to, but all of them will have the same smart features. Real-time tracking so you’ll always know where they are and how long you’ll have to wait, and updated ETA for each stop. This service is the result of data gathered since 2012 via CityMapper. They hope to expand this service, but for now London is the first test city. CityMapper itself has a focus on accessibility and incorporating transit navigation access into urban areas where it may not always easy to find this information. Who knows, in future we may see more of these partnerships throughout the world as more cities embrace technology to address accessibility.
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HumanWare Unveils the New Generation Connect 12
HumanWare just announced the arrival of the second generation of Connect 12, the highly portable digital magnifier and its 12-inch tablet that features an open Android platform.
The ecobee4 is the First Smart Thermostat with Alexa, But is it Accessible?
Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant has integrated itself to work with a variety of smart home devices, but up until now, you needed to buy an Amazon Echo or an Echo Dot to enable those interactions on a thermostat.
Cool Picks: May 1, 2017
Join Jessica, Nelson, and Joel for their exciting Cool Picks this week.
New Method In Printing Braille Is Now In Prototype
A UK based engineering company has created a new and innovative way of providing printed Brailled for the blind. KW Special Projects, along with engineers from Hungary, have developed a prototype of a Braille printer called “B.My.Jet.”
Alexa Becomes More Human With New Speech Synthesis Markup
For the first time this week, Amazon introduced a new Speech Synthesis Markup Language (SSML) for Alexa. Like markup for other languages might allow developers to alter the style or look of a webpage or application, this language allows developers to alter certain aspects of Alexa’s speech. Features released so far include the ability to whisper, spell out words, and modify swear words. Developers are encouraged to test these new features on their skills, so be on the lookout for some interesting new developments. Who knows, your Alexa may just whisper those sweet nothings to you after all!
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