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Atlantique (University of Vigo) researchers have developed technology for emergency care for the deaf, through a multiplatform dictionary of health terms in sign language. The project, called SignaMed, is funded by the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT) and coordinated by José Luis Alba, professor at the School of Telecommunications Engineering, and the results were presented this Wednesday at the Vigo campus.
In that act, the Vice President for Internationalization, Maribel del Pozo describes SignaMed as “innovative, exciting and collaborative” because it opens up a field that has not been explored before., which is the result of a multidisciplinary team and provides access to something as important as medical information to a group of deaf people. “SignaMed is more than a health dictionary in sign language, it’s a tool for inclusion and empowerment of deaf people,” he highlighted.
The project manager explained The dictionary contains more than 300 health-related signs and 231 definitions in sign language, text and internet or by signing in front of a mobile camera. “The latest available model recognizes some 120 signs and variants with 94% accuracy, and little by little, the rest will be integrated,” explained José Luis Alba.
The dictionary has been created with the help of the Federation of Associaciones de Persos Sortas de Galicia. and in collaboration with anonymous collaborators from the deaf community. Within the framework of Signamet, six informative ‘tablets’ were prepared to explain the artificial intelligence technology developed and three competitions were launched to make participation more entertaining.
SignaSalut
A team of experts has been working for months on SignaMed’s follow-up with a new project funded by the Next Generation Fund. Baptized as Signasalut, The work will involve the implementation of a pilot test in a real-world environment at the emergency service of Alvaro Conqueiro Hospital in Vico.
“The platform developed at Signamet will be used to gain the cooperation of the deaf community by signing phrases in sign language for this application domain,” explained Alba. The test is expected to be conducted by the end of 2024In collaboration with the Federation of Deaf Associations, El Sergas and the Polydia Institute.
