About Us
LookTel is a mobile application for Smartphones
that provides a full suite of accessibility and assistance solutions
for visually impaired users. LookTel combines real-time object
recognition that lets users identify specific objects such as
packaged goods, CDs, and money with text-reader capabilities using
Optical Character Recognition (OCR). If additional help is desired,
the user can immediately connect with a friend or family member
using live video or audio chat directly from their mobile phone.
The app was developed by Ipplex, a
leader in researching and developing pioneering cross-platform
applications and services focused on interactive communication,
under sponsorship from the
National Institutes of Health (NIH); LookTel was awarded two research grants from the
National Eye
Institute and the
National Institute on Aging (Grants
1R43EY016953-01 & 2R44EY016953-02). By working closely with research
teams from the US Dept. of Veterans Affairs’
Atlanta Research &
Education Foundation (AREF) and
Blind Wisdom, Ipplex developed the
fully accessible touch-screen interface that powers LookTel.
Over the past few years, close to 40 users have been testing the
system and have provided convincing feedback that LookTel
dramatically increases their functional independence. With more than
345 million visually impaired people worldwide according to the
World Health Organization (WHO), and more than 11 million in the
U.S. alone, the LookTel app is poised to make a strong impact on the
lives of millions of people.
LookTel was recently awarded first
place at the
2010 CTIA E-Tech Awards for Mobile Applications in the
Healthcare category.
