VRead Viewer

Platform: - The software runs on head-mounted displays environment ( prototype developed for SAMSUNG S6/Gear) and needs an external controller for interactions with the environment. - The external controller is used to scroll up/down the text, customize text/environment display settings and in conjunction with head direction to select options. Functionalities: - The user can read the text which is displayed on a flat board (customization: change width/height of the board, change the size of the characters). - User can scroll up and down the text thanks to an external controller - User can alternate between reading and be watching 360 degrees images associated with the text are displayed around (customizations: enhance contrast of 360 degrees image) - User can select customizing options by targeting icons with head direction and select them using an external controller - User can activate an audio ambiance (if available) when they explore the scene (customizations: change volume) - User can select an "ophthalmologist mode" (not implemented yet in that version), VRead Viewer will be of interest to the large public. However, more specific targets for our software have been identified, such as, e.g., low vision people, elderlies or dyslexics. We will focus on people with low vision. Many give up reading because what used to be an enjoyable, effortless activity now requires thought, preparation and a lot of adjustment. Still, reading remains amongst the strongest need reported by patients. This project aims at giving them a new way to make reading enjoyable again, thus contributing to improve their quality of life. Based on feedback from professionals working with low vision people who tested our first demonstration of VRead Viewer, we expect that this new augmented reality experience will be of high interest for low vision people. This is due to three main strengths of our project with respect to the state-of-the-art: - An increased comfort in reading, thanks to a highly customizable display of text through intuitive ergonomics and to the freedom to read where people want. - A new enjoyable way to read again, by developing augmented reading content. - A new tool also for clinicians to interact with patients, as VRead Viewer will include specific methods for the rehabilitation and analysis of patients characteristics. Thus this market could be accessed in two ways, either targeting end-users who simply want to read (directly or through prescribers such as their families, opticians, EPADHS) or targeting clinicians interested in using our software for rehabilitation (ophthalmologists, low vision center).