Staying Oriented: Using AI-Powered Apps as a tool for further Independence

5 years ago, she navigated an Airport using Seeing AI!
I have tried navigating a shopping mall using the same, and I can't imagin doing that on an airport. But again, I use a cane, and, people do crash in to me allot. Or may be I crash in to them, but I like to think the former.
The thing with Seeing AI is that I often don't know where to point the camera at, specially at airports, where the boards might not be those shiney bright shop signs. If it was like those bright shop signs, I would know to point camera at it.
And, in some of our airports, layout of the gates, it's not a strait line, it's some times U shaped, L shaped, T Shaped, and what not.
Now, if something like live recognition was there hands-free, and it gave me hints to adjust camera angles, then I might be successful at navigating airports like that. I would be damn scared of missing my flight though.

First, this was an enjoyable and inspirational read. Thank you for taking the time to write and post this. 😃
Second, navigating the world with a guide dog is so, so much easier than navigating with a cane. I have had to navigate airports both as a cane user, and as a guide dog user, and I will take the guide dog every single time, over the cane. The fact you're able to navigate an airport on your own, with just your guide dog and the Seeing AI app, is just beautiful.
Finally, I hope they add such services to devices such as Meta smart glasses. Oh how wonderful that would be. 🤔

Yes, I remember the wheelchair ordeal at airports...
I was reminded to look up something by the story, and I'm delighted to find that Seeing AI does not require a network connection for its Short Text function. In the back of my mind, I really, really worry about becoming dependent on AI that requires a network connection to function, especially when the network isn't working for what ever reason.
I also use the compass on the phone from time to time. Not that I'm completely sure that would work in all situations with no signal of any sort.

First, the disclaimer: I'm one who for reasons I shall not go into, does not have very good outdoor travel skills. I have been a cane user practically all my life, and have gotten quite good at that. I had some very good O&M training, but not recently. Now with that out of the way, here are my comments. I love this post. I started out using an iPhone 7, and became very comfortable using it. But I am now the proud owner of an iPhone 14, and yes some of these AI apps are on there. I have used them for various tasks with mixed results. I'd very much like to do more traveling one of these years, but based on my somewhat limited experience these apps are a joy to use and they're only getting better. The only problem is that I've had trouble knowing exactly where to point my phone so that these apps can more effectively do their job. But I think an iPhone stand might be in my future. Hint hint: possibly Christmas or my birthday? I'd really like that. Having said all this, I do very much enjoy my iPhone and hope to do more in the coming months. It's honestly a bit daunting to see all the things these apps alone can do. A few years ago I took a car ride with 2 sighted neighbors to a breakfast meeting, and used Soundscape to get an idea of the route which we were traveling. It was a great experience. At the time Microsoft still owned Soundscape and I don't think it was open-source yet. As for Live Recognition, it seems a bit confusing to me but I'm glad Apple included it in iOS 18.

Hi Deborah and all,
That's such an awesome way to use SeeingAI, and it was five years ago too!
I've got a question for any of you who wish to answer: what happens if you're pointing your phone in different directions, and someone thinks you're trying to take a picture of them or something? Has this ever happened to anybody? I've never used SeeingAI or BeMyAI in a public place like this; I'm worried somebody might think I'm trying to take a picture of them or something. I wouldn't mind sitting at a table in a restaurant and reading the menu that way if I had to, but walking around a place waving my phone around doesn't seem like a great idea. That's why I really want a good AI to come to an affordable pair of smart glasses. I've heard of people waring a chest harness for their phone which doesn't sound very comfortable to me.

Hi Tara,

Don't know for sure but I suspect the answer is stereo typing. How many sighted people think us blindies can take pictures? So they probably haven't a clue what we are doing as long as they see the White cane.

Hi Lee,
Good point. Maybe they just wonder what on earth we're doing with our phone. But I don't know, I'm still cautious of using my phone like that. I'd much rather a pair of smart glasses.

First of all, I applaud your courage. Though I travel with a dog, I would not have the courage to venture off in an unknown airport relying on my pointing a phone camera around and hoping I get useful information with only 45 minutes to catch my next flight.
I have been in enough airports to know that there is a very real possibility of needing to take a tram, change levels, change terminals or concourses ETC. ETC. to get to a connecting flight.

On the other hand, while I always need to politely refuse a wheel chair, I have never missed a flight when being guided by an airport provided assistant. Are there communication barriers? Often. But even so, they know where they are going.

So, I'm impressed, mostly by your dogged self determination.

I'd like to know more about this. I'm gonna search the site for this now.

There've been times when I waved my phone around, but nobody was with me when I did it. Again I think this is a confidence thing. I myself--having only had light perception since the ripe old age of 6 months--am still rather overwhelmed by the fact that a person like me can even use the photo and camera apps since they work with VoiceOver. This despite having a brother who has successfully done it for several years. He acquired his first iPhone before me, and was in fact one of the people who convinced me to get one of these. I mean, that wasn't one of the reasons for getting an iPhone in the first place. Having said that, I asked a sighted neighbor to send me at least one pic of a sunset which he took while on Thanksgiving vacation. He sent it to me, as well as some other pics and I ran them through Seeing AI. I've done this in the not-so-distant past and have shown friends and family some of these apps. Everybody has always been impressed. But I suppose there are also those people who doubt this fact, despite anything that they're told. As a matter of fact, I think I just might know some of those people.

Sighted person, "Hey, how do you use a smart phone? Do you braille the screen?!"
Blind person, "... no. I use a screen reader to navigate the device, audibly".
Sighted person, "hey, how do you take pictures with your smart phone? Do you braille the camera?!"
Blind person, "... go away".

/end sarcasm

Thank you for reading. 🙇

I know, but if they were offering it to me with no extra cost; why not get wheeled around like a prince on a chariot? Airport staff and disability inclusion rules for the airlines industry if you think are bad out there, you must experience India and it's airports. I once actually flirted with a staff member and she was extra kind with me by bringing me an extra buttered toast. I am not a guide dog owner, make do with a cane that is so not right for my height but hey sometimes you are the windshield, sometimes the bug. Here they ask for extra money if we need a sighted guide to assist us on the airport. Humanity is dead, if a fellow passenger would just be an ally all this would not concern us as travelers. Not all apples are bad, the passenger on my flight, the curious Joe, kept me engaged in talking to him about my disability and assistive technology. His mission was to convert me to a Christian; well I obliged and now I do everything in the name of Jesus including walking into moving obstacles

I no longer have a guide dog. Retired him 2 years ago, and he now lives with a family with 3 kids between middle school and college ages, whom spoil the life out of him. So, the few times I have to travel by plane, I always take the offered wheelchair.
1. It gets me through TSA super quick.
2. I always make my gate.
3. I can respond to texts, etc, while being wheeled around.

Why yes, it is true. I have no shame.

thank you for reading. 🙇

Nice to see this blog, Deborah. Sorry I missed it when it was originally posted.

The barrier to using Seeing AI as Deborah did is that you need one hand for the iPhone and another for the came or dog. Unless you've got one of those cool harnesses and strap your phone to your chest. This leaves no hands for your bag, or that latte you picked up at Starbucks. The Meta glasses feel like they are ever so close to being able to do what Deborah did, but hands-free. Meta's AI could improve on the Seeing AI experience by adding location information: approximate distance and direction to the signs it is reading.

Another way AI could help: The AI could access a map of the airport. Combined with what it sees through the smart glasses, the AI could then give you turn by turn walking directions. This would beat the crap out of existing indoor navigation systems.

I take a wheelchair in an airport. Works great with a folding cane. No dog paws to run over. But if Meta can make AI smart glasses for US$300, why not build that technology into a motorized wheelchair? "Hey wheelchair, take me to my Detroit flight." You wouldn't even need the gate. The wheelchair could look that up. Or it could scan your boarding pass. Or you could share your boarding pass with the wheelchair.

We're really close, folks, and it's only going to get better.

I can't imagine walking around and waving my phone in South Africa.