GADGETS: FingerReader: 3D printed ring reads text to the blind

The ability to read is something most of us take for granted, but up until recently it’s also something that’s difficult for millions of visually impaired people. The FingerReader promises to change this, letting those with impaired eyesight read regular BOOKS and text without resorting to Braille.

The FingerReader is a brilliantly simple idea, cramming a tiny camera and the tech needed to connect to your computer or SMARTPHONE into a device small enough to slip onto your finger.

The camera can scan text, and in turn this can be turned into speech, letting visually impaired people move their fingers along the lines in a BOOK, or even a BUSINESS CARD, with the FingerReader reading aloud as they go. Granted, it currently sounds terrifyingly robotic, but it’s EASY TO imagine that being one of the smaller issues that need to be solved before FingerReader hits the shops – just think how natural Google Now or Siri can sound these days.

Unlike Braille, it’s obviously difficult for visually impaired PEOPLE to realise when they’ve strayed off a line of text, which is why the FingerReader also gets a vibration feature to help them stay on course.

The FingerReader is currently being developed by researchers at MIT, and although it’s still at a prototype stage, the designers are looking to attract investors, with the hope of bringing an affordable version of FingerReader to the public in the not too distant future.

The potential for FingerReader is also massive, and it could help a lot more than just visually impaired PEOPLE. With the ability to make things easier for elderly people, tourists who don’t know the language or even children, we can’t wait to see what the team at MIT can come up with over the NEXT year or two.

Check out FingerReader in ACTION below: