Newly-launched Samsung app enables deafblind people to have two-way communication with others
Samsung has recently launched an innovative new app – Good Vibes – in India to enable people who are deafblind to communicate with ease.
Good Vibes enables the deafblind to have a two-way communication with their carers and loved ones using their smartphones. The clever app uses Morse code to convert vibrations into text or voice and vice-versa.
To create the app, Samsung conducted workshops with participants from across India to gain invaluable feedback to ensure Good Vibes works effectively for deafblind people.
The app has two different user interfaces (UI). One interface has an invisible UI for the deafblind, which uses vibrations, taps and gestures, while the other has a visible UI, a standard chat interface, for the caregiver.
With the deafblind interface, a deafblind person uses a combination of dots and dashes to send their messages. The standard interface allows users to type or use voice to send messages to the deafblind. Then, the text or voice is received as vibrations in Morse code that the deafblind can interpret.
Samsung India has launched a digital video that shows the impact Good Vibes can have on the life of a deafblind individual, which can be watched below:
Peter Rhee, Corporate Vice President of Samsung India, said: “Samsung uses both its innovation and global network to create positive change, responding to people’s needs around the world and helping them to live better lives, with more choice, freedom and greater possibilities.
“We are happy we were able to develop technologies such as Good Vibes that will help improve quality of life of the deafblind, allowing them to become more aware of the world around them and better integrated with society.”
In addition, Samsung Good Vibes was developed in coordination with Sense International India, a not-for-profit organisation which helps the deafblind and sensitises people about the disability.
The app can be downloaded from the Samsung Galaxy Store and will be made available on Google Play Store for all other Android smartphone users in the future.