Rutgers University Introduces an Amazing New App For Visually Impaired
Finding your way around the campus of Rutgers University in New Brunswick could be a difficult task for those who are blind, have low vision, or are struggling with directions. Now they’re introducing Aira, which provides free visual interpreting services to anyone on campus.
What the App Does
Aira is available 24/7 wherever there is an internet connection. Initially, it was created to provide on-demand visual interpreting for people who are blind or with low vision, but the services can be used by anyone seeking access to visual information, said Carlie Andrews, senior director of the Office of Disability Services (ODS) at Rutgers New Brunswick.
The Aria app is available on smartphones, tablets, and computers. It offers around-the-clock, person-to-person visual interpreting services. Anything from reading textbooks or prescription labels to guiding students taking the bus. The services are free to anyone on the Rutgers New Brunswick campus, and can roll out to other campuses in the future.
Andrews said, “Rutgers is an Aira access partner, which means that anyone who sets foot within your physical space is able to use Aira services for free.”
Additional Advantages
The app’s primary customer base is individuals who are blind or have low vision, but Aira has a lot of uses that go well beyond that. They work with several students who either have traumatic brain injury or something else that inhibits or prohibits their ability to use a screen for too long. There’s software out there that helps with that, but it can sometimes take a very long time to learn how to use it.
With the Aira app, if you’re not able to spend a lot of time on the computer but you’ve got to get your assignment done or you’ve got to get through these readings, you can call an Aira agent and they will read to you whatever you need to read.
The app may be potentially helpful for individuals on the autism spectrum as well.
“Aira representatives have access to our bus schedules, so if someone was on a bus and not sure where they were going or where they were going to end up, an Aira agent would be able to pull up a schedule and help them.”
What’s also fascinating is that Aira really focuses on the ways the service could help somebody in their personal life, whether sorting laundry, reading a label on a bottle, or making sure that they can tell the difference between a $5 or $10 bill.
Andrews’ office works closely with many campus partners such as the Office of Career Exploration and Success in hosting events aimed at addressing some unique needs that students with disabilities may have or questions that they may have.
Learn All About It
For example, SparkNight, a free monthly art party at the Zimmerli Art Museum, will celebrate Disability Awareness Month and feature an Aira representative to talk about the app and its free services. SparkNight is set from 4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. this Thursday, Oct. 5, at the Zimmerli, 71 Hamilton St., New Brunswick.
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