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Many people find it difficult to hear announcements when using public transportation. Sometimes it’s hard to see the announcements, especially if there are a lot of people on board. It’s even harder for people with hearing or visual impairments and the elderly. However, one company has recognized this and developed a technology that allows you to hear the announcements regardless of the noise. It is What We Care.
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| ▲ What We Care / CEO Myongyoon Berhm |
Innovation is here with Smart Hearing Loop
What We Care develops consumer goods components, products, and solutions that are safe, comfortable, and practical for everyone to use. One of the challenges that people with hearing impariments or elderly people face when using public transportation is the difficulty of hearing announcements. You should be able to hear the subway or bus announcements or see a screen to prepare to get off the train or bus, but with so many people on board, it can be hard to see the screen and sometimes the noise can make it difficult to hear the announcements. If you miss an announcement, especially if you’re blind, you have no way of knowing where you’re going. What We Care’s Smart Hearing Loop was developed to solve this problem. When Smart Hearing Loop is installed as a wall-mounted product, you can switch your cochlear implant and hearing aids to T mode to receive sound directly into your hearing aids and cochlear implants. Hearing aids and cochlear implants pick up sound directly, so you can hear clear sound information even in noisy environments, and you can also listen to sound with earphones and headsets. Smart Hearing Loop can also transmit sound in Bluetooth broadcast mode, so it can be used by people who do not use cochlear implants or hearing aids.
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Excellent performance, easy installation wins 6th Will You Hold My Hand
Smart Hearing Loop relays sound information to your smartphone so you can hear it again through your earphones. If you are visually impaired and miss the announcements due to noise, this feature allows you to hear them again. The audio information is also translated in real-time to help foreign users who are not familiar with Korean to clearly understand the announcements again. Smart Hearing Loop is easy to install and does not require separate receiver management. Existing hearing loop systems require a lot of cost and a long time because they are cable-embedded. Nevertheless, it has not been able to solve the problem of hearing aid and cochlear implant users being able to hear sound properly in a noisy environment. To solve this problem, What We Care uses BLE wireless audio technology to improve the signal-to-noise ratio for hearing aid and cochlear implant users to maximize listening ability. It also uses a non-contact wireless transmission and reception method and a low-power 1:N multi-use method to extend battery life.
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Smart Hearing Loop is currently installed in various welfare facilities for the hearing impaired, including bus stop shelters in Seongdong-gu, Seoul, and is receiving positive response. Recognized for the contribution to society, What We Care received the grand prize at the 6th Will You Hold My Hand held by Hanmi Global and Walk Together in 2023. The company was also designated as a preliminary social enterprise by the Seoul Metropolitan Government and received a verification certificate of the test bed project from the city. “With the goal of changing our society little by little, we will create a world where everyone can smile” says What We Care.
권동호 기자 dongho2010@naver.com
