Prototype eyeglasses let people ‘see’ sound

Inspired by video games, the Singapore University of Technology and Design students have developed an accessory that attaches to eyeglasses and translates audio signals into visual cues using light.{{quote-A:R-W:450-I:2-Q: The idea came from first-person shooter games, where a glowing red or blue light around the periphery of the screen typically alerts players to the location of an eny. -WHO:Pavithren Pakianathan, team leader}}The clip-on prototype, called Peri, does this by lighting up at the edges near the frame in the same direction that a loud sound has come from.For example, a friend approaching from the right could call out to someone hard of hearing, at which time the light on the right-hand edge of the prototype glasses would illuminate, indicating noise from that direction.Although the device is still in the development stage, team leader Mr Pavithren Pakianathan said it has already shown promise in helping people with hearing loss be more aware of their surroundings, by letting th detect potential sources of sound or noise.Pakianathan said the idea came from first-person shooter games, where a glowing red or blue light around the periphery of the screen typically alerts players to the location of an eny shooting.Peri is equipped with four microphones attached to the four corners of the eyeglasses and tuned for sensitivity to noise. Each microphone is connected to a series of lights which glows correspondingly to the area where it detects the loudest audio signal.{{image3-a:r-w:300}}The device, which only took about four months from inception to complete, was also designed to clip-on to standard spectacles in order to keep costs low for users.However, Pakianathan pointed out Peri still has a long way to go in terms of features and portability, with the team already aiming to make it less obtrusive to users, while work is also being done to refine audio algorithms in order to make it better at picking out sound alerts in noisy environments.Future iterations of the device could also include light sensors in order to allow the brightness of the LED indicators to adjust its intensity depending the surrounding light levels.