Subtitles section Play video
-
You might think there are many things that I can't do
-
because I cannot see.
-
That's largely true.
-
Actually, I just needed to have a bit of help
-
to come up to the stage.
-
But there is also a lot that I can do.
-
This is me rock climbing for the first time.
-
Actually, I love sports and I can play many sports,
-
like swimming, skiing, skating, scuba diving, running and so on.
-
But there is one limitation:
-
somebody needs to help me.
-
I want to be independent.
-
I lost my sight at the age of 14 in a swimming pool accident.
-
I was an active, independent teenager,
-
and suddenly I became blind.
-
The hardest thing for me was losing my independence.
-
Things that until then seemed simple became almost impossible to do alone.
-
For example, one of my challenges was textbooks.
-
Back then, there were no personal computers,
-
no Internet, no smartphones.
-
So I had to ask one of my two brothers to read me textbooks,
-
and I had to create my own books in Braille.
-
Can you imagine?
-
Of course, my brothers were not happy about it,
-
and later, I noticed they were not there whenever I needed them.
-
(Laughter)
-
I think they tried to stay away from me.
-
I don't blame them.
-
I really wanted to be freed from relying on someone.
-
That became my strong desire to ignite innovation.
-
Jump ahead to the mid-1980s.
-
I got to know cutting-edge technologies
-
and I thought to myself,
-
how come there is no computer technology
-
to create books in Braille?
-
These amazing technologies must be able to also help people
-
with limitations like myself.
-
That's the moment my innovation journey began.
-
I started developing digital book technologies,
-
such as a digital Braille editor, digital Braille dictionary
-
and a digital Braille library network.
-
Today, every student who is visually impaired can read textbooks,
-
by using personal computers and mobile devices,
-
in Braille or in voice.
-
This may not surprise you,
-
since everyone now has digital books in their tablets in 2015.
-
But Braille went digital many years before digital books,
-
already in the late 1980s, almost 30 years ago.
-
Strong and specific needs of the blind people
-
made this opportunity to create digital books way back then.
-
And this is actually not the first time this happened,
-
because history shows us accessibility ignites innovation.
-
The telephone was invented while developing a communication tool
-
for hearing impaired people.
-
Some keyboards were also invented to help people with disabilities.
-
Now I'm going to give you another example from my own life.
-
In the '90s, people around me started talking about the Internet
-
and web browsing.
-
I remember the first time I went on the web.
-
I was astonished.
-
I could access newspapers at any time and every day.
-
I could even search for any information by myself.
-
I desperately wanted to help the blind people have access to the Internet,
-
and I found ways to render the web into synthesized voice,
-
which dramatically simplified the user interface.
-
This led me to develop the Home Page Reader in 1997,
-
first in Japanese and later, translated into 11 languages.
-
When I developed the Home Page Reader,
-
I got many comments from users.
-
One that I strongly remember said,
-
"For me, the Internet is a small window to the world."
-
It was a revolutionary moment for the blind.
-
The cyber world became accessible,
-
and this technology that we created for the blind has many uses,
-
way beyond what I imagined.
-
It can help drivers listen to their emails
-
or it can help you listen to a recipe while cooking.
-
Today, I am more independent,
-
but it is still not enough.
-
For example, when I approached the stage just now, I needed assistance.
-
My goal is to come up here independently.
-
And not just here.
-
My goal is to be able to travel and do things that are simple to you.
-
OK, now let me show you the latest technologies.
-
This is a smartphone app that we are working on.
-
(Video) Electronic voice: 51 feet to the door, and keep straight.
-
EV: Take the two doors to go out. The door is on your right.
-
EV: Nick is approaching. Looks so happy.
-
Chieko Asakawa: Hi, Nick!
-
(Laughter)
-
CA: Where are you going? You look so happy.
-
Nick: Oh -- well, my paper just got accepted.
-
CA: That's great! Congratulations.
-
Nick: Thanks. Wait -- how'd you know it was me, and that I look happy?
-
(Chieko and Nick laugh)
-
Man: Hi.
-
(Laughter)
-
CA: Oh ... hi.
-
EV: He is not talking to you, but on his phone.
-
EV: Potato chips.
-
EV: Dark chocolate with almonds.
-
EV: You gained 5 pounds since yesterday; take apple instead of chocolate.
-
(Laughter)
-
EV: Approaching.
-
EV: You arrived.
-
CA: Now ...
-
(Applause)
-
Thank you.
-
So now the app navigates me
-
by analyzing beacon signals and smartphone sensors
-
and permits me to move around indoor and outdoor environments
-
all by myself.
-
But the computer vision part that showed who is approaching,
-
in which mood -- we are still working on that part.
-
And recognizing facial expressions is very important for me to be social.
-
So now the fusions of technologies are ready to help me
-
see the real world.
-
We call this cognitive assistance.
-
It understands our surrounding world
-
and whispers to me in voice or sends a vibration to my fingers.
-
Cognitive assistance will augment missing or weakened abilities --
-
in other words, our five senses.
-
This technology is only in an early stage,
-
but eventually, I'll be able to find a classroom on campus,
-
enjoy window shopping
-
or find a nice restaurant while walking along a street.
-
It will be amazing if I can find you on the street before you notice me.
-
It will become my best buddy, and yours.
-
So, this really is a great challenge.
-
It is a challenge that needs collaboration,
-
which is why we are creating an open community
-
to accelerate research activities.
-
Just this morning, we announced the open-source fundamental technologies
-
you just saw in the video.
-
The frontier is the real world.
-
The blind community is exploring this technical frontier
-
and the pathfinder.
-
I hope to work with you to explore the new era,
-
and the next time that I'm on this stage,
-
through technology and innovation,
-
I will be able to walk up here
-
all by myself.
-
Thank you so much.
-
(Applause)