NaviLens

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{{Orphan|date=October 2024}}

{{Expand Dutch| Navilens|date=October 2024}}

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NaviLens is a color matrix barcode intended to help blind and visually impaired people find their way around railway and subway stations, museums, libraries, and other public spaces.{{Cite web |last=Morris |first=Amanda |date=2021-12-20 |title=Navigational Apps for the Blind Could Have a Broader Appeal |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/20/technology/navigational-apps-blind-low-vision.html |website=The New York Times}}

The color matrix code, a tag similar to a simplified QR code{{Cite web|last=Carlin|first=Dave|date=2024-01-23|title=MTA using technology similar to QR codes to help commuters access trains and buses more easily|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/newyork/news/mta-using-technology-similar-to-qr-codes-to-help-commuters-access-trains-and-buses-more-easily|access-date=2025-05-30|website=CBS News|language=en-US}}, is read by an app on the smartphone, and then provides selected information about the detected tag's location relative to the user (distance, angle) and about the target to be reached. This could be public transportation schedules, potential physical obstacles, or physical descriptions of the environment. Users can also download tags, print them, and customize their meaning to label food boxes or personal documents.{{cite web|archive-date=25 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225202302/https://www.technologyreview.com/2019/06/06/135057/these-colorful-stickers-are-helping-blind-people-find-their-way-around/|date=6 June 2019|publisher=technologyreview.com|title=These colorful stickers are helping blind people find their way around|url=https://www.technologyreview.com/2019/06/06/135057/these-colorful-stickers-are-helping-blind-people-find-their-way-around/}}

Navilens was developed by the Laboratorio de Investigación en Visión Móvil (Movile Vision Research Laboratory){{Cite web |last=Alicante |first=Mobile Vision Research Laboratory University of |title=Mobile Vision Research Laboratory |url=https://web.ua.es/en/mvrlab/mvrlab.html |access-date=2024-10-24 |website=Mobile Vision Research Laboratory |language=en}} at the University of Alicante, in collaboration with the Spanish startup NaviLens.{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

Navilens is proprietary software; intellectual property and licensing rights follow Spanish law, and are held by NaviLens' parent company Neosistec.{{Cite web |title=NaviLens Terms |url=https://www.navilens.com/terms |access-date=2024-10-24 |website=www.navilens.com}}{{Cite web |title=Neosistec. Especialistas en innovación y desarrollo de software |trans-title=Neosistec. Specialists in innovation and software development |url=https://www.neosistec.com/ |access-date=2024-10-24 |website=www.neosistec.com |language=Spanish}} When using the app, location data and serial number of the smartphone are recorded; the company earns revenue from use of this data. public use of the codes requires paying a license fee to Neostatic; personal use in the home or other private sphere is currently automatically licensed free of charge.{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

The food product company Kellogg's has obtained a license to put codes on several of their products.{{Cite web |last=Curry |first=Ebony JJ |date=2023-03-13 |title=New app helps visually impaired with grocery shopping |url=https://www.abc12.com/news/new-app-helps-visually-impaired-with-grocery-shopping/article_40887cc8-c1e1-11ed-9b80-5b936c96eb22.html |access-date=2024-10-24 |website=ABC 12 WJRT-TV |language=en}}

Examples

  • Public transport in Spain{{Cite web |last=Swain |first=Frank |date=2019-06-06 |title=These colorful stickers are helping blind people find their way around |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/2019/06/06/135057/these-colorful-stickers-are-helping-blind-people-find-their-way-around/ |access-date=2024-10-24 |website=MIT Technology Review |language=en}}
  • New York City subway stations{{Cite web |last=amNewYork |date=2024-10-12 |title=Ask the MTA {{!}} The entrance to Grand Central Madison and expanding the NaviLens pilot program {{!}} amNewYork |url=https://www.amny.com/transit/ask-the-mta-october-2024/ |access-date=2024-10-24 |website=www.amny.com |language=en-US}}
  • Some Belgian railway stations{{cite web|access-date=25 July 2022|archive-date=25 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220725050550/https://www.belgiantrain.be/nl/about-sncb/en-route-vers-mieux/innovation/navilens|title=B-navilens|url=https://www.belgiantrain.be/nl/about-sncb/en-route-vers-mieux/innovation/navilens}}
  • VIA Metropolitan Transit{{Cite web |last=Reports |first=SBG San Antonio Staff |date=2024-02-09 |title=San Antonio transit introduces NaviLens for visually impaired riders |url=https://foxsanantonio.com/newsletter-daily/san-antonio-transit-introduces-navilens-for-visually-impaired-riders-people-community-help-bexar-county-assistance-blind-legally |access-date=2024-10-24 |website=KABB |language=en}}

References

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