Description of App
BlindSquare makes you sense what's around you. The only thing you need to do is listen.
BlindSquare is a new solution that combines the latest technology to help the blind with their daily lives. It has been developed in collaboration with
blind people and carefully field tested. You need either an iPhone or an iPad to get started. It also supports some additional accessories to enhance the
experience.
How does it work?
BlindSquare uses GPS and the compass to locate you. It then gathers information about the surrounding environment from FourSquare. BlindSquare has some
unique algorithms to decide what information is the most relevant and then speaks it to you with high quality speech synthesis.
“What's the most popular café within 200 meters radius? Where is the post office or the library?”
Using BlindSquare as a GPS solution:
When you start the app, it will start telling you the interesting places and street crossings around you. By changing the radius, you can limit the area
you are interested in. You can also search by search term or by category. You can select an interesting place from the search results and perform the following
tasks:
1) Get contact info (address, phone number)
2) Open twitter feed or restaurant menu (if provided)
3) Make a phone call
4) Start tracking the place (BlindSquare will assist you by repeating the distance and the clock face direction)
5) Start your favourite navigator for turn-by-turn instructions (TomTom, Navigon or Apple Maps)
BlindSquare is aware of when you travel by car, bus or train and starts to report interesting places in front of you (for example, the next stops) and
street crossings when you are passing them.
You can also save your own private places to iCloud so they will be found with your every device.
Using BlindSquare as a FourSquare client:
If you like to play FourSquare, you can do the following with BlindSquare:
1) Get a list of nearby FourSquare venues
2) When you are in a place, you can check in by shaking your device
3) Do a check in with commenting and twitter/facebook sharing
4) Correct the location of the place
BlindSquare supports the following languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Dutch, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Czech, Russian, Estonian,
Polish, Arabic, Turkish, Portuguese, Japanese, Greek, Romanian, Croatian, Hungarian, Korean and Bulgarian.
VoiceOver usage is supported but it also includes higher quality additional speech synthesis by Acapela Text-To-Speech from Acapela Group.
Instructions in English: http://help.blindsquare.com/instructions and http://blindsquare.com/faq
Please note: This app retrieves data in real time from Foursquare and Open Street Map. Use of a flat rate data plan is highly recommended.
Having only been released in May 2012, BlindSquare has already received several prizes and awards:
- GSMA: Global Mobile Awards 2013, Best Mobile Health Product or Service
- Apps4Finland 2012
- OpenCities App Challenge 2012
- The Finnish Information Processing Association: Best Product 2012
Please note: To use BlindSquare, your iCloud account has to be active so BlindSquare can access it to save your settings and places.
Continued use of GPS running in the background can dramatically decrease battery life.
Comments
Version 3.2
What's New in Version 3.2
NEW: You can now filter list items in the My Places list, category search results, and text search results by a search term, subcategory, or by distance.
Use the Action button in the top right of the screen to initiate a filtering action. You can apply filters to a filtered list, too. For example: You can
first double-tap “Food”, and then filter the list to only show Italian restaurants. Once Italian restaurants only are displayed, you can apply a second
filter and tell BlindSquare to only show matches within a specified distance.
NEW: On the Place Summary screen, you will find a new button called Find Similar Places, which brings up a list of places of the same category as the currently
shown place.
NEW: You can now mark contacts as favorites so they appear on your My Places list.
NEW: You can now define what information you hear when you use the My Location feature through the Audio Menu; see Other, Settings, Audio Menu settings.
CHANGE: The Add Place button is now located in the top row of buttons on the main screen.
CHANGE: When you launch Apple Maps through BlindSquare for turn-by-turn directions, your starting location is now also sent to Apple Maps.
FIX: When you returned to a point on your my Places List that BlindSquare has already announced during the same walk, BlindSquare will now announce it
again most of the time provided a certain amount of time has elapsed after you passed the point for the first time.
Version 3.3
What's New in Version 3.3
NEW: New options have been added to the Quick Access menu: You can now make a call, view a restaurant menu, hail a Uber cab, or view public transport options.
To open the Quick Access menu, tab and hold the name of a place when in a list of places.
NEW: Added Clear Search History option to the Action menu on the Search screen.
NEW: You can now share any location using the QR code option on the Share Location screen.
NEW: You can now import locations using the QR code reader in the Tools menu.
CHANGE: When filtering by distance, numeric keypad is used
CHANGE: Find similar places searches a larger area than before, (max 25 kilometers)
Ducking
Does anyone else have issues with Blind Square and ducking?
Since i got it, when I'm out walking, I have iCatcher playing a podcast. When Blind Square makes an announcement, it ducks the podcast audio, but after the announcement, the audio does not return to normal unless I pause and restart playback.
I assume this is Blind Square's fault because when Zombies Run or a Voice Over alert duck the podcast, the audio returns to the normal level.
Now, in iOS 9.01. I have had Blind Square duck Voice Over. I have had Voice Over's volume dropped to a low level, and the only way I have been able to get it back to normal, short of restarting the phone, is to close Blind Square from the task switcher. Stopping and restarting Voice Over did not help.
Anyone else have these issues?
Ducking problem in iOS9
This is problem that iOS9 introduced. It will not happen, if you use BlindSquare to respond your headphone remote, so as a workaround, you can go to Other / Settings, Audio Menu Settings, Use Headset remote to control: "BlindSquare".
This will be fixed in next release.
Thank You
I will look into using my headset controls. I use them to start and stop podcast playback, and figured that meant it was not appropriate for use with Blind Square. I am glad to hear this will be fixed in the next release.
Thank you for your fast reply.
Ghost Intersection
I have an intersection near my home that Blind Square does not announce. The two roads are announced at other intersections, but not when they cross. It is not a new crossing. During my regular walk, I first approach from the west, and then much later from the south. In both cases, I never hear anything about the intersection.
This is the only intersection I have this with. Every other intersection I cross, on these two roads as well, are announced.
Short of creating a My Place near the intersection, is there a way to have this crossing announced?
Version 3.37
What's New in Version 3.37
NEW: BlindSquare now supports CityMapper, another public transportation app you can use to look up schedules and plan routes. See a list of supported cities
at https://citymapper.com/cities
FIXED: On the iPhone 6 models, the keyboard is now displayed in the correct size.
Can not get it on my AppleWatch
Hello, I truly like this, but I cannot get it on my Apple Watch. Should I delete the app from my phone and try again? My iPhone and Apple are running the latest iOS.
Apple Watch and BlindSquare
There is no native support for Apple Watch, but you can use music controlling feature to use Audio Menu. You can listen podcast how to do it from here: http://www.applevis.com/sites/default/files/podcasts/AppleVisPodcast752.mp3
Thanks
Thank you very much for the link to the podcast. I will try that later today. Do you think there will be availability of the app on the watch at some point?
Ducking
My ducking issue is mostly solved, and I'm very happy.
As a recap, I run iCatcher, Zombies Run, and Blind Square concurrently when out walking.
I was having issues where Blind Square audio would duck the other audio sources, including VO, and not want to return them to their prior volume.
After updating to the latest version, I fired up my apps and set out for a walk today. I still had an issue where VO occasionally, rather than always, wanted to stay ducked at a lower volume. However, the problems with iCatcher and Zombies Run were all fixed.
It was a much nicer walk not having to mess with my phone every time Blind Square announced something.
Thank you.
AppleWatch
I have some plans for AppleWatch, but I think it is not very high on priority compared to some other features I'm planning / working on.
Version 3.40
What's New in Version 3.40
NEW: the internal browser that opens when you open the website of a location from the Place Summary screen now has three buttons at the bottom of the screen:
Back and Forward to go to the previous or next page and Safari to open the current page in Safari.
CHANGE: Open Street Map information has been updated. This should improve the user experience in areas where intersections were not announced reliably
in the past.
CHANGE: When you perform a search, BlindSquare no longer filters out places. This should result in more matches. However, this filter is still active for
automatic announcements to prevent announcement of garbage data from Foursquare. BlindSquare will only announce a place automatically if at least five
different people have checked in there.
FIX: Importing places now works again under iOS 9.
The BlindSquare instructions under Other, Help have been updated.
Version 4.0
What's New in Version 4.0
New: You can now control BlindSquare through voice commands. Double-tap the Voice Command button in the bottom left corner of the screen and say “help”
to hear a list of the commands available. The Voice Command feature is a premium service requiring purchase of credits for continuous use. With the exception
of the HELP command and unrecognized commands, each command consumes one credit. Voice Command Credits are available as an in-app purchase on the App Store.
New: Public transport live data integration for Finland, the UK, New Zealand, and Denmark. You can shake your device or use the Audio Menu to hear the
closest stop and next departures of buses and trains.
New: Added iOS voice Alex as voice option in BlindSquare (iOS9 only)
New: You can now order a 3D-printed tactile map of an area from within BlindSquare. Go to the location sharing options to find this new feature.
Fix: Selected language is no longer saved in iCloud. Should you accidentally set BlindSquare to another language, you can uninstall the app. When it is
reinstalled, it will automatically use the device language.
New: Using 3D touch on the BlindSquare icon now lets you perform searches, add places, check in, and start the Look Around feature.
New: BlindSquare now supports Spotlight Search. You can, for example, search for Chinese restaurants in Spotlight Search and then open the search result
in BlindSquare.
New: Time is now the last item in the Audio Menu. When it is activated, BlindSquare will announce the current date and battery level.
New: Apple Maps and Google Maps are now listed as an option for "Public
Transport".
New: Support for Moovit public transport app
Fix: Resolved a problem where the volume of VoiceOver would be decreased when using BlindSquare.
New: User guide translated to Finnish, Italian, and Greek.
Major problems with the app today
I just updated to version 4.0, along with the upgrade to iOS 10. I don't know which of the two updates introduced the issues I am having, but I am now having serious problems with BlindSquare.
The biggest problem for me is that the app no longer works simultaneously with background audio, such as from the Music app. If the screen is locked while music is playing, BlindSquare goes completely silent, with no announcements of any kind while moving. If the device is unlocked, BlindSquare will make announcements as normal, but any audio from the app causes music playback to stop, requiring me to start the music again manually. When I do start it again, such as by pressing the play button on my Bluetooth headphones, the music plays at a ducked volume, even if there is no other audio.
Additionally, I seem to be stuck with the Alex voice. BlindSquare gives me two options for US English, one of which says Alex, but both options cause Alex to be heard. Believe it or not, I actually prefer to hear Samantha in this app, though that may be because she's the voice I've been using in the app for quite some time now.
I am also having problems with the speaking rate. When I first started using the app today, the voice was much slower than it usually is. When I adjusted the speech rate within the app settings, it suddenly became really fast, and I had to set it to a lower rate to be comfortable with the voice. Later, after the app had gone into sleep mode, the voice went back to a very slow rate. This is while using Alex.
The fact that music playback no longer works with this app means I can't use it anymore. I have been on the fence about purchasing Nearby Explorer, but my bad experience with BlindSquare today will likely force me to get Nearby, assuming it works fine with music playback in iOS 10.
Did you try
Did you try relaunching BlindSquare after changing voice?
What setting you use for Audio Menu (in Other / Settings). Does it cause any difference in behaviour?
Answers
Yes, I did relaunch the app. The issue I described with speech rate becoming inconsistent appears to be gone, but the other issues I described remain.
I have the audio menu set to control music playback by default. I tried switching it to control BlindSquare, but it did not make any difference.
By the way, does BlindSquare require access to the microphone? If I deny access, I get an alert saying BlindSquare requires the microphone to work, but I have no intention of using the voice features introduced in the latest version.
Microphone is used only for speech recognition
...so you don't need to give permission to use it. I suggest you try it out though, you have free credits to do so. You can always deny access later, but if you give permission, microphone is turned on only when you activate voice command listening.
Figured out one issue
I was able to determine why BlindSquare was using Alex even when I selected the non-Alex option.
It appears that, when the voice is set to US English, BlindSquare uses whatever voice is configured in Settings > General > Accessibility > Speech > Voices > English US. I had it set to Alex, so Alex was the voice that got used.
It would be nice to have the option to select from any installed iOS voice, since iOS 10 significantly expands the voice options from what was available in prior versions. I know this is possible, since other apps I use give me the ability to select from any installed voice.
This still doesn't resolve my biggest problem, though. I almost always have music playing while going for walks in the neighborhood, and I am not about to give that up.
Issue with voice creddits
So I tried a voice command and it said that buses is not available in your ariea. Even though the command didn't work it took away a creddit. I also wish this update would use google or apple for near by locations and points of interests as Foursquare is inaccurate when it comes to that. Still lots of cool updates to this app!
bus command
Technically it did work, so it recognised what you wanted it to do and it gave you result. But I understand what you mean, so I will implement something that gives one credit back in this situation.
Nearby Intersections screen does not work in simulation mode
I discovered that, if BlindSquare is in simulation mode, attempting to bring up the screen with nearby intersections does not work.
I was hoping to use this screen to figure out how a particular roadway travels, by seeing what other roads intersect it. I simulated one of the road's intersections in the app, but then I couldn't get a list of other intersections in the vicinity.
The app Nearby Explorer has the ability to show a list of intersections for a particular street, but that feature is currently broken in my area with the current release. I am trying to plan a route for walking, so I don't get surprised while I am actually on my way. Trying to follow roads in Apple Maps is tedious at best, and it often fails to announce intersections while following a road.
Intersections are supported in simulation
I just simulated "New York". Tools/Nearby Intersections shows lot of intersection.
Can you send location you tried to simulate to dev@blindsquare.com and I'll check it out.
Relaunch fixed it
It turns out a bunch of features weren't working while in simulation mode, including search, look around, etc.
I closed the app from the app switcher and relaunched it, and it appears to be working now.
I might still send you my location, to see if you can figure out why some intersections in my area are either missing or announced incorrectly, and if there is any way to fix it. Would you like me to do that?
Version 4.02
I just updated to version 4.02, and it appears that I can now use the app with background audio again. The audio does not duck, as it used to in the past, but I am okay with it. In fact, that's how Nearby Explorer works, and I think I might actually prefer not having the audio duck for these apps.
I have yet to really test this version out, though, but I am hoping this version works as well as the app used to. As much as I like Nearby Explorer, it has problems announcing intersections in my area, and there are a few features of BlindSquare that I miss while using the other app, such as announcements when GPS accuracy is poor, when there is no network connection, as well as how far I have walked and how much time has elapsed.
Yes, 4.02 fixes background audio
I'm glad you noticed this fix, thank you for reporting it.
I tried to make ducking work, but for some reason it doesn't. This may have something to do with the fact that BlindSquare continues to support iOS6, 7, 8, 9 and 10. I think it is important, since this allows use of older and cheaper devices.
PS. Here is instructions about Voice Commands: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1StblcdSJect_czIdijUiSfgXLyaJsGRnqY3MqMFUK1I/pub
Menus
So a strange question. I notice that a lot of restaurants on BlindSquare have menus. I think this is a very awesome thing. However, many restaurants' menus are out of date on the app. I suppose the menu source is Foursquare? Is that correct? My question is is there some way that Blindsquare could do multiple source checks for menus? I hope this question makes sense.
Out of Date
Sadly a lot of things on 4Square are out of date including locations. The data is even inaccurate because people like to name their houses as restaurants, entertainment places, and so on.
Out of date and inaccurate
I agree. BlindSquare would be a lot better if it could use a source other than Foursquare for place information. As I said before, I simply cannot use this app to find points of interest, because there is too much bad info on Foursquare. That's the problem with crowd-sourced databases - they're only as good as the users of the service.
There used to be a grocery store near where I live, but it was one of several in the chain that got shut down a couple of years ago, yet it still shows up as a Foursquare place. Other sources, such as Google, no longer list the store. There are numerous points of interest in my neighborhood that have wrong GPS coordinates, placing them several blocks away from where they truly are, and in a few cases the GPS position is over a mile away. Also, I don't need to hear about the "top of my parents' house" or "my favorite parking lot" or other nonsense places, and there's no effective way to filter them out without also filtering legitimate places.
Hmmm, I named my place
Foursquare is a starting place, and I haven't had the same issues that you seem to have had @dvdmth. However, I do think it would be great if we could check other sources like Yelp or Google. I don't know how that would be implemented, though.
Nearest address is?
Yesterday, while on a walk, there was an area where BlindSquare kept telling me, "Nearest address is Littleton, United States." This was while walking on a street in an ordinary neighborhood, although the streets have a bunch of twists and turns around here.
I went to the same area today, and the same thing happened at around the same location. Other places I go to do not appear to do this.
Is the name of the nearest city the best BlindSquare can do if it does not know what street I am currently on? If it has to give an approximate address, I would think it would announce a nearby street or intersection, rather than a city name.
Useful for discovering routes?
Hi All,
My one question in regards to this app is very simple, how good is BlindSquare at helping you discover new routes and explore unknown areas, in other words ones that I haven't been walking around?
It depends
It depends on what you are looking for. If you want to use it to find points of interest then it is not accurate as the app uses foursquare and has miss labeled locations, businesses that no longer exist and so on. For example if you were walking on my street you would be told that the Wells Fargo Center was 5 minutes away. When actually the Wells Fargo Center is further away as it is in the city and I'm about 15 minutes out of the city. The reason it says this is because someone named there house or location this. If you just want to know streets around you or have an address to plug in then you are fine. If you walk to a location that the app found just be aware that it could be someone's house, a place that went out of business, or the actual location of a still operating business. If you find a place that you want to check out while walking I'd check it on Google Maps or Apple Maps.
For streets, it's okay
When I explore an area I haven't been to before, I find BlindSquare to be pretty useful as far as figuring out how the streets go in the area. As I walk, it periodically announces my current address, as well as which direction I am traveling. When I reach an intersection, it usually announces what streets are present at the intersection, although there are a few places near my house where this doesn't work properly.
You can also use the app's look around feature to find out what intersections are nearby in various directions, or you can open the app and view a list of intersections directly on the screen. These can help get a better idea of how the streets are laid out, although in my area it gets tricky because the streets meander all over the place, thanks to the uneven terrain around here.
I cannot recommend BlindSquare for finding nearby places of interest, because it's just not accurate. Nearby Explorer does a much better job in this area, since it uses Google instead of Foursquare by default.
One thing BlindSquare does offer, at least in my area, is that walking trails and bike paths also show up in the list of intersections. For example, I live near the South Platte River, and there is a trail called the Platte River Trail that runs along the river. When I am walking on this trail, BlindSquare announces intersections with roadways as I pass them, as well as intersections with other trails that branch off to either side. Nearby Explorer does not do this at all, so I find BlindSquare to be superior in this area. Not all trails are announced, since they need to be in the Open Street Map database, but it comes in handy when a particular trail does come up.
4 square
Considering how inaccurate the 4 square data seems to be, what is the likelihood of blind square changing to a more trusted resource?
Something really screwy is going on
Can someone out there do the following for me?
1. In BlindSquare, look for the city of Littleton, CO.
2. Tell BlindSquare to simulate this location.
3. Now do a search for Columbine Manor Park.
4. Simulate this location, so that BlindSquare acts as though you are at this particular park.
5. Bring up the tools menu, and select the option for nearby intersections.
6. Tell me what the first few items are on the list.
In this area, several intersections are not correctly identified by BlindSquare, with odd names like KeNorth Caryl Avenue instead of Ken Caryl Avenue. This has been an issue for me ever since I first started using the app a few months ago.
But here's the weird thing. On a couple of occasions now, these intersections suddenly started getting announced correctly by BlindSquare, as if nothing was wrong. I then think that maybe the problem with the map data here may have been fixed. But then, the next time I use the app, the intersections are back to their incorrect descriptions.
The erroneous descriptions don't just happen at this neighborhood. There are several other intersections in the general region that get announced incorrectly, usually with the same mistake of changing the last letter of a word to a direction, like County Line Road becoming County LinEast Road.
Has anyone else seen something like this? Can others reproduce the issue at the exact location I mentioned above?
How I use BlindSquare mostly
I use Google Maps to get within a block or two of the destination. I then open BlindSquare, enter in the name or the address where I'm going, and make sure the two addresses match up. Thus far, I haven't had an issue with them not matching. Then, I have BlindSquare start tracking me so it can get me as close as possible to my destination. This seems to work great for me. Love this program. Although I do agree, that having Google locations as an option might be a better way to go, as Foursquare places don't seem to get updated very often.
WhereTo? app has BlindSquare integration
One option to find places from Google, is to purchase WhereTo-app from App Store (USD 3, https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/where-to-find-best-places/id903955898?mt=8). It has been integrated with BlindSquare: When you find place, you can select Directions and BlindSquare.
BlindSquare, Moovit and Directions Of Streets
Hi. It's nice to see that there is some public transport integration now with BlindSquare. On reading through various bits and bobs on here I see that some people are using the MoovIt app. How? I downloaded it today as, having seen other people sing it, I thought maybe it would be accessible. It would seem not however. If anyone has got this to work with BlindSquare please do let me know how. When I say it doesn't work, maybe I"m not explaining myself too well. I can load it up and it gives me bus routes etc but It doesn't tell me what stop I'm to get off at.
I also downloaded RNIB Navigator as a trial this week because I was told that it tells you what directions the road intersections are in when you get to them. for example, Hill Street on your left, Waterloo Road ahead etc. It would be great if BlindSquare could do this. I don't begrudge paying for apps, however, I do begrudge paying a yearly subscription just to have that feature.
Version 4.09
Hi. Just upgraded and I now see that it is possible to use blind Square with the Sendero apps. I am trying to figure out what the point of this would be? Does that mean we can download one of their apps but use the maps from BlindSquare so we don't have to pay a subscription?
Also, I thought it was possible to use the Siri voice is now? I can't seem to find them.
Siri voices
The Siri voices are available, but you need to know the actual names for the voices. They are:
US Male: Aaron
US Female: Nicky
UK Male: Arthur
UK Female: Martha
Australia Male: Gordon
Australia Female: Catherine
Also make sure the voices are installed, under Settings - General - Accessibility - Speech - Voices - English. There was a bug in earlier versions of iOS 10 which could cause the voices to disappear unexpectedly.
3rd Party Apps
Hi, I'm afraid not, unfortunately. you'll still have to pay a subscription to use that 3rd party app. all BlindSquare does with these apps is open them for you, with the details of the location you're trying to get to, and then the 3rd party app does it's job, while BlindSquare continues to work as normal in collaboration with whatever third party app you're using. At least that's what I think is the case.
Siri Voices on Blindsquare
Hi. Thanks for this. I was one of hte poor unfortunates who lost siri UK female enhanced. Please to say Martha is back now and i'll be changing my blindsquare voice to her too. Thanks for help with this. :-)
Blindsquare With Sendero Apps
Hi. Then maybe I'm missing the point. I still don't understand why you would need both as blindsquare does everything that Sendero does apart from tell you the directions roads run in. Not to mention that when I used RNIB navigator, the location of my home was wildly inaccurate. Not only was it way short of where it was but it was also on the wrong side of the road. Very bizarre.
Using BlindSquare with other apps
Yes, the main point of third party apps is for turn by turn navigation, which when it comes to GPS apps that require a subscription, I simply don't choose to do that. I use free third party apps with BlindSquare, usually Apple maps and Move It for buses.
Very quiet audio when using BlindSquare
Hi. I have just bought myself some aftershokz bluez 2S For use when using navigational apps outdoors and I have come across a very interesting problem. I am using the UK Siri female enhanced voice for my iPhone and Martha on BlindSquare. However, when I load BlindSquare up, the voice on BlindSquare is much louder than the Siri UK voice. I was under the impression that if I used this voice, I would only have one voice to contend with. Whenever I get announcements from BlindSquare, it is very loud, but if I start to swipe with my finger to reach the search button for example, the voice is so quiet, I can barely hear it. I thought maybe it was an issue with audio ducking, so turned that off, but it made no difference. Any suggestions or advice gratefully received
BlindSquare volume
BlindSquare has its own volume setting, independent from VoiceOver. If you want BlindSquare to speak at the same volume, you must change the setting to match what you use for VoiceOver, such as making both 60 percent.
Since BlindSquare does its own audio, it can talk at the same time as VoiceOver, even if they are set to use the same voice. For this reason, I suggest using a different voice, so that you can more easily distinguish between BlindSquare announcements and VoiceOver announcements, particularly when they overlap.
BlindSquare Volume
Hi. Thanks for this. The irony is that BlindSquare Voice volume is set to 100% and I had the volum maxed out on my phone also.
Kerry
Version 4.26
What's New in Version 4.26
Fix - VoiceOver Bug
A VoiceOver bug, introduced in iOS v.10, has been corrected. Now, auto-updating fields works again. When you leave VoiceOver cursor over a data field, you will hear changes automatically. (Examples, compass, speed, heading, etc.)
Feature - New Message Types
BlindSquare BPS (Indoor navigation) will gain new types (examples, fire exits and pedestrian crossing) providing identifying tones preceding spoken details.
Feature - Improved Compass
Improved management of COMPASS while indoors. We have accelerated the response-to-turns and suppressed the signalling from GPS sources while operating within a beacon cloud, preventing stray messaging triggered by location changes.
Feature - Perkins BlindWays Integration
In March, at CSUN, we jointly announced a partnership between Perkins School for the Blind (Perkins) and BlindSquare supporting the delivery of the greatest transit information solution in North America. Perkins has created an incredible product called BlindWays on the iOS platform. BlindWays gathers, from crowd-sources, inner-circle information for the areas around bus stops. Detailed are descriptions, cautions and clues to best-support the transit rider as they approach their bus stop. Examples on approach, to learn of the presence of bus shelters, landmarks in proximity, trash containers, and more including a description of the actual location of the stop (ie, “on a post”). This, to provide micro-navigation within the inner circle but more, independence. BlindWays provides meaningful descriptions, using consistent language, raising confidence in travel. BlindWays, sponsored by Google, is celebrating its first deployment in Boston, Massachusetts in the USA. 7800 bus stops will soon be fully described with 70% now available.
We were approached by Google and Perkins to explore the connecting of services between BlindSquare (providing global travel support, live and simulated) to BlindWays information (providing inner circle navigation within the 5 meter/16 feet) of benefit to our common friend, the traveler who is blind/partially-sighted or deaf-blind. We shared the vision of the logic and desire to connect the services. BlindSquare version 4.26 presents this solution.
Friends in Boston now have the following features available:
Automatically, on approach to bus stops, advise about the route and bus services specific to the location. This includes expected arrival times, by bus.
On request, by shaking the device OR by pressing the Fast/Forward button on Media controls (whether wired or bluetooth), hear secondary transit information regarding service changes or disruptions.
On request, by pressing the Fast/Forward or rewind button ons Media controls (whether wired or bluetooth), skip-forward or back, through messaging to speed access to information of greatest interest or to review.
On request, by shaking by shaking the device OR by pressing the Fast/Forward button on Media controls (whether wired or bluetooth), hear BlindWays’ detailed descriptions of “the inner circle” on approach to the stop. No longer, the risk of standing in a wrong location only to hear the bus expected, driving by.
On request, by using the simple Voice Command or the Audio Menu selection “Bus” - request the information relative to the location of interest. Locations can be simulated from any global location, across the city or across the globe.
Example, search for “145 Dartmouth Boston”, Simulate this location. Speak the Voice Command “Bus”. Listen, shake as you may wish to unlock secondary information including Service Disruption announcements and BlindWays data.
We are proud of the work and partnering with Perkins to create the most-informed transit rider on the planet.
[Demonstration of BlindSquare and BlindWays integration, by Ilkka Pirttimaa]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/5129261/BlindWays-demo.mp3 .
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country support
Is blindsquare available for use in Malaysia?
Is it available for use in every country around the world?