American tech giant company Google has rolled out two new features for people with speech or physical disabilities.
Through the recently-released features, users can now operate their Android-powered smartphones hands-free.
The two new features, ‘Project Activate’ and ‘Camera Switches’ let users perform tasks like speaking a custom phrase or navigating using a switch interface, through facial gestures alone, ANI reported from Washington.
‘Camera Switches’ is a feature for the existing Switch Access that now lets users operate Android with just their face.
Camera Switches will allow users to set a facial gesture (looking left, right, or up; smiling, raising your eyebrows, or opening your mouth) to a specific action.
People can customize how sensitive the trigger for each gesture is to make sure it only happens when you want it to and assign functions like scrolling forward or backward, navigating home or back, or even simple things like long-pressing.
Users can also augment it with Switch Access’ existing support for physical switches.
Ultimately, the combination sounds like users should be able to use their phone entirely using nothing but their face. No touching, external hardware, or fine motor control is required. It will likely take longer to do the same things, though.
‘Project Activate’ is Google’s other new feature, and it’s kind of similar, allowing you to use the same facial gestures that Camera Switches uses, but you’ll be able to activate more complicated pre-set actions, like having your phone say a phrase or make a call.
It’s a standalone app that was just published to the Play Store.
That means rather than toting around a complicated or expensive speech-generating device, you might be able to simply use your phone to trigger a handful of common phrases.