BlindSquare, the app that makes daily life easier for blind users

It is made in Finland and it has been developed with the help of a team of blind users, it’s BlindSquare the app that will make the city more accessible to the blind

di Ottavia Spaggiari

 

A  new app will make things a bit easier for blind users. It’s called BlindSquare and works a bit like FourSquare but it is completely accessible and it is designed to give extra information about the surrounding environment to blind people. Created by a Finnish company, MIPSoft, BlindSquare has been developed together with a team of blind users to ensure its functionality.

The app algorithms choose the most relevant information about the area and makes it available to the user through a quality speech synthesis. Thank to the app, it will be easy to find the most popular cafè within 200 meters radius, the closest library or post office. Through a compass and GPS system, the app will also offer extra information such as, the address, the nearest crossing, the directions to get to the destination and the services available there, as well as the level of accessibility.

In order to get the information the user will just have to shake their I-Phone, and they’ll have to shake it again, to share their location with the community. As a matter of fact, just like Foursquare, BlindSquare allows its users to share information about the places they visit, giving the chance to save the favorite places. The app is available on the App Store, in English, Finnish and Swedish.

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