A lightweight device that clips onto your glasses is changing the way people with reading difficulties access day to day information.
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About 30 people attended a seminar hosted by Macular Disease Foundation Australia at the Port Macquarie Racecourse on Wednesday August 15.
On show was OrCam MyEye technology which has a self-contained camera and computer. It is about the size of a lipstick tube.
A spokesperson for the distributing company Tim Connell said there are a number of ways to activate the product.
"If you have some vision, the easiest way to start reading is to point your finger at a page of text," he said. "OrCam will capture a photo of the page and begin reading it back.
"To stop reading, you simply raise your hand in front of the camera and it stops; it recognises gestures,” he said.
"This is the first device that allows someone to scan a page and selectively begin reading material."
Previous technology would scan an entire page and read through the text from start to finish.
"Think of all the things you use your eyes for every day to get information.
- Tim Connell
Mr Connell says the technology is designed for daily use including shopping or reading a menu in a restaurant.
"Think of all the things you use your eyes for every day to get information," he said. "It is just something that is a constant in our lives."
Mr Connell said the product will read text from your phone, computer screen, it recognises money and particular products on a shelf in a supermarket.
It also has facial recognition capabilities.
"You simply point the camera at someone's face, it will take a photo and you put a name to that photo. That information is stored away in the computer memory.
“The next time that person comes into your scope of vision, it will recognise that face and, discreetly, tell me your name."
Mr Connell said OrCam will never replace a guide dog or a walking cane but will add another layer of information for the individual to use.
"Losing your sight or having reading difficulties can cause a whole range of associated issues including, lack of social interaction, depression, risk of falls. The aim of this technology is to keep people active, living at home and living independently.
"It is really about the liberation of accessing information."
He said the product would assist people who are blind or partially sighted, have reading difficulties including dyslexia, acquired brain injury, cognitive impairment or have a low level of reading function.
About one in seven Australians has some evidence of age related macular degeneration.
