Team leader
Tim Fendley, AIG
Team members
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (audio visual design), Toyota Motor Corporation (automobile design), TOTO (product design), Ricoh Company Limited (information systems), Kawashima Seikon Textiles (textile design), NEC Design (advance design).
Lead user
Remi - a young profoundly deaf office worker who lip reads.
The issue
Helen Keller noted that while blindness cuts you off from things, deafness cuts you off from people. While one-to-one conversation is possible for hearing-impaired people who lip-read, much socialising takes place in groups. To understand the ebb and flow of conversation, and be an active participant in it, being able to track the changing context is crucial.
Audio Sphere
Audio Sphere is a device akin to a crystal ball, which skilfully exploits existing new software that allow moods to be observed, speech to be translated into text and audio sampling to take place. This freestanding sphere contains a four-directional microphone, a processor and a display surface. On this the flow and direction of speech and the position of the main speakers are indicated as are the keywords of the conversation at hand. The shifting moods of the conversation are also indicated throughout.
