Can you ever image how difficult it is to communicate without voice? Does our body language convey what exactly you want to tell to other person? No, it is not possible in most of the cases. And I’m sure that most of us though why can’t a dumb person talk when a deaf can hear? So, now I have a good news for voiceless.
An innovative technology developed by Andreas Forsland, gives voice to the voiceless. A designer by training, Andreas previously worked as a product and brand strategist for giant companies like Philips and Citrix.
Four years ago, Andrea’s mother was hospitalized with pneumonia and was on ventilator for weeks. She was unable to communicate with her son and that was the situation Forsland intended to find a way for her to exchange “affirmations of love and support.”
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Forsland, CEO of his own Calif.-based company Santa Barbara. then designed an electronic device, Smartstones Touch which makes non-verbal communication smooth and absolute. The device is in a stone shaped casing that recognizes few gestures programmed with the company’s app- :prose.
The stone shaped device lights up with LEDs, vibrates or even expels sound from the internal speaker. With this innovative technology, you can communicate just by Swiping, grasping or moving the stone which sends a signal to others.
Company’s proprietary app, :prose is capable of integrating with other wearable devices like Apple watch. Earlier in the month of April, Smartstones won a Gold Award at the Edison Awards for its :prose app. Besides converting simple taps to speech, it can also translate electrical currents from human brain into words and phrases with Emotiv.
Emotiv is a brainwave headset launched by the company in beta in April. So, now this helps the one who is suffering from diseases like ALS, paralysis, cerebral palsy, spinal cord and brain injuries. Disabled to speak? Not anymore, they can finally “think to speak.”
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“We want to democratize voice,” says Forsland. The :prose app is available for iPhone, iPad and iPod users at the cost of $59, while a Smartstones Touch plus :prose costs $159. Smartstones Touch devices will fit market in summer.
“You can establish whatever vocabulary you want to use for every swipe, so it’s completely personalized,” stated Forsland. “So I have my list of phrases, and my friend has the same number of gestures, but he can configure them to say whatever he wants. So he got his vocabulary, I’ve got my vocabulary … You add a third person, you triple your vocabulary.”
