Be A Hero, Level Up, and Help The Blind See
- Nicholas Waggoner
- May 31, 2017
- 2 min read
Be My Eyes is an innovative approach to solving common, every-day inconveniences that face the blind and visually impaired community. A developer started with an idea, how can I help those who cannot see, see the things they need to see. Beyond being a brain-teaser and as frustrating as The Card Paradox, it is a question that lies at the core of every inventor aiming to reshape the lives of those living with sight loss. To be more precise, how does someone without sight tell if something in their fridge has expired? How can someone who is blind grab a snack in the cafeteria vending machine without help from someone else? How can someone who cannot see shapes or colors tell if their outfit matches? Is there a simple answer to all these questions? Thankfully, the answer IS simple. They can solve these conundrums because of you.
Be My Eyes is a FREE mobile app that establishes a video connection between a sighted volunteer and a visually impaired person that they are helping. The tasks can be as simple as those questions suggested above or perhaps it is something more complex like reading test questions to a visually impaired test-taker. The app is a truly non-profit solution to helping those with varying degrees of vision loss. When you log onto the app, there will be a button that states “connect to first available volunteers”. The camera on both the volunteers phone and the visually impaired users phone will pair so that the sighted user can see what the sight-impaired user is trying to have described to them. The best part of the app is that it links to someone who speaks your language. Additionally, it compensates for time-zones so that a user never needs to worry about disturbing someone at a late hour. The app also makes sure to randomly select pairs of users/volunteers each time so that the user receives help quickly. In fact, most connections are established in under 60 seconds!
“It's my hope that by helping each other as an online community, Be My Eyes will make a big difference in the everyday lives of blind people all over the world”
– Hans Jørgen Wiberg, Founder of Be My Eyes
The app is also great for volunteers that wish they could do more to help others, but have inflexible schedules. You could open the app on your lunch break and help someone, somewhere with a problem they are facing. If that wasn’t rewarding enough, the developer incorporated a leveling system, to help you keep track of all the good you have accomplished in the app.
The app is currently only available on iPhone, however an android version is currently being developed. you can find out more about the progress of the Android app by going to their website Here (www.BeMyEyes.com) and clicking the 'Android' tab.
Good will towards others comes in all forms. Sometimes it is donating to a charity so they can help others, or sometimes it is taking a simple action like holding open a door for someone in need. I’m just glad someone had the vision to give people like myself the opportunity to help someone at the push of a button on their smartphone.
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