The site is similar to Wikipedia, where members of the community can make their own edits as they visit places and see how much each place has. Users can mark their findings with a green sign indicating a wheelchair accessible location; orange, which means wheelchair accessible; or red, indicating that the location is not available. The availability of toilets can also be rated. Berlin, Tokyo, and Paris are the hottest entry points, but the site has grown to include users worldwide with 3.2 million locations.
Google Maps
The free and ubiquitous Google Maps has a number of accessibility features, such as a wheelchair-accessible route so you can find steps-free directions between places. If you are looking for shops, businesses, or museums, the wheelchair sign can help you find more possibilities. For example, Google can tell you if there’s an entrance without stairs, accessible restrooms, parking spaces, or accommodations.
For those who are visually impaired, the ability to read the screen on Lens in Maps can give you a clear idea of ​​your surroundings as well as useful information, such as the name and category of the place and its altitude. And, with Google’s Detailed Voice Guidance feature available worldwide, you can even get directions.
Be My Eyes
The Be My Eyes mobile app provides people who are blind or have low vision with volunteers who can see through a mobile phone. The volunteers provide detailed descriptions of what they see through the phone’s camera. For example, a sample call shows a blind user asking for help identifying a red cardigan versus a black cardigan. Currently, there are approximately 690,000 blind people and more than 7,600,000 volunteers on the platform.
If the user doesn’t want to interact with a live person, the app also offers an artificial intelligence experience called Be My AI that uses computer vision and an AI chatbot to explain what it sees in the photos you take. Since the feature doesn’t rely on volunteers, users can use AI at any time of the day or night, or just when they need a quick response to a simple issue and don’t want to disturb someone else.
The app is available on iOS and Android. “While people use Be My Eyes for many things, we know that travel assistance is the most important,” said Mike Buckley, chairman and CEO. to understand the buttons on the phone or the soap and shampoo bottles in the shower.
What’s on Your iPhone
Apple products offer many features available. For example, the iPhone’s captions feature allows users who are Deaf or hard of hearing to read real-time text on their screen when talking to someone in person, on FaceTime, or over the phone. Sound Detection allows the user to program the phone to detect specific sounds such as a doorbell, alarm, or water running from a faucet, and notifies the user with a vibration and notification. And Magnifier doesn’t just magnify objects, symbols, and characters, it also includes color recognition. For example, Door Detection enables the user to approach the door and tell them how to open it.
Other Equipment
In addition to these apps and websites, travel blogs like Curb Free by Cory Lee, Have a Wheelchair Will Travel, and Simply Emma are great places to find travel tips. Programs like GalaPro allow the Deaf and hard of hearing to read captions for Broadway shows if they are not provided. And many sites like Yelp and Airbnb are now integrating accessibility into their platforms, thus making vacations more accessible and, well, accessible. So now more people can join in the fun.
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