OrCam at Work

The year was 1978. The setting was Sydney, Australia. A rock band, named Men at Work, was formed.

The work environment these days is much different than that of the 1970s. Today, most jobs involve some aspect of computer work. Whereas there were no smart phones 40 years ago, today documents emails, and other work related reading materials are all instantly accessible with the swipe of a finger.

When the OrCam MyEye was introduced to the visually impaired community, the developers could not have foreseen the extent of the impact it would have on the users in their work environments.

Users explained how the OrCam MyEye helps them accomplish simple activities, which sighted people do automatically, like reading the newspaper, books, menus etc.  However, in addition to the simple activities that the OrCam MyEye assists with, there is a fast growing group of users who are using the OrCam MyEye as a tool to improve or maintain their employment. These users are finding new and innovative ways to use the device to help them better perform in their jobs.

Before having an OrCam device, some of the users were embarrassed of their disability and would try to hide it as much as possible in their work environment.

“One of the main concerns was that the employee would think that their disability reduced their functionality at work and reduced their value to the employer, though in many cases, these feelings were far from being true. Using an OrCam MyEye at work helps visually impaired employees by assisting them in reading work related materials, identifying co-workers to avoid embarrassing social situations as well as increasing the employee’s self-confidence and ability to cope with more tasks easily” says Sivan Wagner of the HR team at driver assistance systems producer Mobileye.

Using the OrCam MyEye at work has allowed many users to read documents on the go without the need to rush back to their desks and scan it in a table-top OCR device. It also allows users to read their emails from any laptop or computer screens without the need to install and setup a special app or software to assist them in reading from the screens. One such user, math teacher Susan Tesone, claims that the OrCam device reduces the time it takes her to read documents and homework papers allowing her to get more work done throughout the day and spend more time with her family (As seen on Fox News)

The OrCam MyEye is not connected to the Internet nor does it save pictures that it takes during its operation.  This allows users to read confidential documents at work without worrying about privacy issues.

Having recognized these advantages, some Vocational Rehabilitation agencies are starting to work with OrCam and recommend OrCam MyEye to their users. These agencies not only help their users with identifying the best methods and tools to improve their employment capabilities but are also able to assist with financing these tools. With the help of the OrCam MyEye, work-related issues for the visually impaired community can be a thing of the past.

The year was 1982. Men at Work released the album called “Business as Usual”. Fast forward to 2015: Using the OrCam MyEye at work allows people to overcome daily challenges, improve efficiency, increase self-confidence and demonstrate that in spite of their disability, fulfilling for so many people the title of the song: “Business as Usual”.