[Nebraska-senior-blind] A new Mobility device - rather interesting

Wed Oct 28 02:39:16 UTC 2015

Not sure you all have seen this post:

Maybe we can discuss this during our November meeting. “What do we need to travel safely?” 

From: Arjun Mali <arjunmali at imerciv.com <mailto:arjunmali at imerciv.com> >
Subject: Re: Advice on NFB Mailing Lists - iMerciv
Date: Tue, 27 Oct 2015 20:39:09 -0400
To: David Andrews <dandrews at visi.com <mailto:dandrews at visi.com> >

Hi Everyone, 

We are a small start-up company based in Toronto called iMerciv Inc. and we wanted to let people know about the development of our new product that caters to the orientation and mobility needs of those living with vision loss. The device has been street tested and very well received by blind and low vision communities in Canada hence our excitement to let your members know about it. The newly launched BuzzClip is a small wearable device that helps those living with vision loss with day to day traveling by detecting obstacles in oneâ€™s immediate environment and then notifying the wearer of these obstacles through intuitive vibrations. It uses ultrasound to detect any obstacle it is pointing at and vibrates faster and stronger as the obstacle/person gets closer. 

The BuzzClip is an electronic device that offers upper body protection that is sometimes missed by a guide dog or cane. It is not meant to be a replacement for the cane or a guide dog rather it is supposed to work in tandem with traditional aids to provide the user more information on their surroundings, particularly at head level. The BuzzClip can be easily attached to many forms of clothing (i.e it can be clipped on a lapel of a winter jacket, on a collar, sleeves (long or short) and the lining of oneâ€™s belt) making it a highly versatile and useful device at an affordable price.

There have indeed been many proximity detectors that came out over the years. And the earlier ones definitely caused a lot of frustration as the functionality and reliability were far from advertised. But we have been working closely and testing our prototypes every step of the way with visually impaired testers in Canada, the U.S and India. Although we do use the same ultrasonic technology, the technology has become much more refined over the years. Also The Buzzclip is not just another ultrasonic proximity detector. The fact that it is wearable and hands free makes it applicable in a lot more use cases. Some of our testers have been using it in line ups at coffee shops to determine when the line is moving forward. Some of them have been using it as a way finder in tight spaces or crowded rooms by walking in the directions where the Buzzclip doesn't detect anything. Some have been using it as security by attaching it behind them, they would know someone is sneaking up on them if the Buzzclip detects something coming towards them and they don't hear anything. Some have found it useful as they would be able to tell if the person they are conversing with got up to get water and when they get back. 
It provides extra information on one's surroundings passively and users are constantly finding new ways to use this extra information. 

The BuzzClip is currently available to pre-order on a crowdfunding platform â€˜Indiegogoâ€™ for the next 25 days and is being offered at a discounted price of $129 USD
After this campaign ends on November 22nd, the final batch of BuzzClips will be manufactured and shipped to our supporters by March of 2016.
More information/videos on our product can be found here: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-buzzclip-wearable-ultrasound-for-the-blind/x/11673979#/ 
The link above is our Indiegogo page address and Indiegogo is one of the largest Crowdfunding website in the world that is based in the United States just like Kickstarter. 

A lot of effort was put into optimizing the user experience of the device. Limiting it to 1m and 2m modes reduces false positives and only provides vibratory feedback if there are obstacles or people in your path or coming directly at you. The device goes to sleep if you are at a fixed distance for over a few seconds so that it doesn't constantly vibrate if you are talking to someone for example. It reactivates again if the distance changes for more than 10 cm. So once it is switched on, the user can simply carry on their usual routine without the need to operate the device constantly. The battery will last for a full days use (10 hours) on a single charge and it is rechargeable through a Micro-USB cable. (just like android phones)

Aside from the useability, a lot of thought was put into the design and aesthetics as well. The Buzzclip is slightly larger than a lighter. The enclosure is made entirely of aluminum so that it is water resistant and durable and also very aesthetically pleasing. The device consists of 3 main sections, a sensor arm that is circular and smaller than the size of an iPod nano in terms of area. It is connected to the battery enclosure by a metallic spring clip that is similar to the ones on pocket knifes and multi-tools. The main body is rectangular with rounded edges and is roughly the size of a lighter. The micro-USB charging port is on the side of the main body. On the back of the main body is the vibration motor arm which is spring-loaded for when one is wearing loose clothing. The entire unit has a finish that is similar to the look and feel of the Apple TV remote. When it is worn, the only part that will be exposed is the circular sensor arm. 

For reference, our press release is on yahoo finance if you search "the buzzclip" on yahoo finance and we have been featured on Eyes on Mobility, blind.tech, cool wearable, tech vibes, Cool Blind Tech and CNET. I won't attach links here, but you can find us on those websites if you need reassurance. The Founders names are Bin Liu and Arjun Mali and you can reach them +1 (647) 919 6565 for Bin and +1 (647) 919 9269 for Arjun.

Hope this information helps and is useful to some of you. If you have any questions for us, we would be happy to answer them. 
You can contact us at info at imerciv.com <mailto:info at imerciv.com>  or give us a call at one of the numbers provided above.

Thank You & Best Regards,

Arjun Mali
Co-Founder & Chief Financial Officer
iMerciv Inc.
Email:  <mailto:arjunmali at imerciv.com> arjunmali at imerciv.com    .    Phone: (647)-919-9269    .     <http://www.imerciv.com> www.imerciv.com

On Oct 27, 2015, at 7:38 PM, David Andrews <dandrews at visi.com <mailto:dandrews at visi.com> > wrote:

Send it to me and I will put it on the appropriate lists.

Dave

At 06:28 PM 10/27/2015, you wrote:

Hi David,

I wanted to apologize for the manner in which our information was presented to the NFB mailing lists. 
Honestly we were not trying to spam anyone and I realize that it must have been annoying to receive an bombardment of emails from our team.

I have spoken to all members of our team and I ensure you that it will not happen again.
We wanted to spread the news about our new product and get some feedback from the audience we cater to and thought that NFB members would be the best people to engage.
Some NFB lists engaged in discussions with us and found the info very useful once we were able to answer their questions, hence we have since re-written our message to provide informative details about our company, our new product and our overall mission.

Which lists would you recommend sharing our information with?
Please advise us on the appropriate methods of communicating with NFB member lists so that we do not violate any mailing list rules.
Once again we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you and we look forward to engaging in meaningful discussions with members of the NFB.

Thank You & Best Regards,

Arjun Mali
Co-Founder & Chief Financial Officer
iMerciv Inc.
Email:  <mailto:arjunmali at imerciv.com> arjunmali at imerciv.com    .    Phone: (647)-919-9269    .     <http://www.imerciv.com/> www.imerciv.com

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