PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

EyeMusic Sensory Substitution Device enables the blind to 'see' colors and shapes

Pleasant auditory representations used, according to study published in Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience

2014-02-04
(Press-News.org) Contact information: Daphne Watrin
d.watrin@iospress.nl
31-206-883-355
IOS Press
EyeMusic Sensory Substitution Device enables the blind to 'see' colors and shapes Pleasant auditory representations used, according to study published in Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience

Amsterdam, NL, February 4, 2014 – Using auditory or tactile stimulation, Sensory Substitution Devices (SSDs) provide representations of visual information and can help the blind "see" colors and shapes. SSDs scan images and transform the information into audio or touch signals that users are trained to understand, enabling them to recognize the image without seeing it.

Currently SSDs are not widely used within the blind community because they can be cumbersome and unpleasant to use. However, a team of researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have developed the EyeMusic, a novel SSD that transmits shape and color information through a composition of pleasant musical tones, or "soundscapes." A new study published in Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience reports that using the EyeMusic SSD, both blind and blindfolded sighted participants were able to correctly identify a variety of basic shapes and colors after as little as 2-3 hours of training.

Most SSDs do not have the ability to provide color information, and some of the tactile and auditory systems used are said to be unpleasant after prolonged use. The EyeMusic, developed by senior investigator Prof. Amir Amedi, PhD, and his team at the Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences (ELSC) and the Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada at the Hebrew University, scans an image and uses musical pitch to represent the location of pixels. The higher the pixel on a vertical plane, the higher the pitch of the musical note associated with it. Timing is used to indicate horizontal pixel location. Notes played closer to the opening cue represent the left side of the image, while notes played later in the sequence represent the right side. Additionally, color information is conveyed by the use of different musical instruments to create the sounds: white (vocals), blue (trumpet), red (reggae organ), green (synthesized reed), yellow (violin); black is represented by silence.

"This study is a demonstration of abilities showing that it is possible to encode the basic building blocks of shape using the EyeMusic," explains Prof. Amir Amedi. "Furthermore, the success in associating color to musical timbre holds promise for facilitating the representation of more complex shapes."

In addition to successfully identifying shapes and colors, users in the new EyeMusic study indicated they found the SSD's soundscapes to be relatively pleasant and potentially tolerable for prolonged use. "In soundscapes generated from images," notes Prof. Amedi, "there is a tendency for adjacent frequencies to be played together. Using a semitone western scale would then generate sounds that are perceived as highly dissonant. Therefore, to generate more pleasant soundscapes, we used the pentatonic musical scale that generates less dissonance when adjacent notes are played together."

While this new study shows that the EyeMusic can enable the visually impaired to extract visual shape and color information using auditory soundscapes of objects, researchers feel that this device also holds great promise for the field of visual rehabilitation in general. By providing additional color information, the EyeMusic can help facilitate object recognition and scene segmentation, while the pleasant soundscapes offer the potential of prolonged use.

"There is evidence suggesting that the brain is organized as a task-machine and not as a sensory machine. This strengthens the view that SSDs can be useful for visual rehabilitation, and therefore we suggest that the time may be ripe for turning part of the SSD spotlight back on practical visual rehabilitation," Prof. Amedi adds. "In the future, it would be intriguing to test whether the use of naturalistic sounds, like music and human voice, can facilitate learning and brain processing relying on the developed neural networks for music and human voice processing."

Additionally, the researchers hope the EyeMusic can become a tool for future neuroscience research. "It would be intriguing to explore the plastic changes associated with learning to decode color information for auditory timbre in the congenitally blind, who never experience color in their life. The utilization of the EyeMusic and its added color information in the field of neuroscience could facilitate exploring several questions in the blind with the potential to expand our understanding of brain organization in general," concludes Prof. Amedi.

INFORMATION:

A demonstration, "EyeMusic: Hearing colored shapes" is available from the AppStore.



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Mind over matter: Beating pain and painkillers

2014-02-04
With nearly one-third of Americans suffering from chronic pain, prescription opioid painkillers have become the leading form of treatment for this debilitating condition. ...

Climate change threatens to cause trillions in damage to world's coastal regions

2014-02-04
New research predicts that coastal regions may face massive increases in damages from storm surge flooding over the course of the 21st century. According to the study published ...

Is high blood pressure the new HIV epidemic?

2014-02-04
High blood pressure could be as devastating to global health as HIV, a group of experts is warning. Writing in the International Journal of Epidemiology this week, Prof Peter Lloyd-Sherlock from the University of ...

Hot weather deaths projected to rise 257 percent by 2050s, experts warn

2014-02-04
The number of annual excess deaths caused by hot weather in England and Wales is ...

Better access to healthy foods is not enough to tackle obesity

2014-02-04
Government initiatives to improve access to healthy foods may have a limited impact ...

Organic farms support more species

2014-02-04
On average, organic farms support 34% more plant, ...

Telemedicine service may expand access to acute medical care, study finds

2014-02-04
People who are younger, more affluent and do not have established health care relationships are more likely to use a telemedicine program that allows patients to get medical help -- including prescriptions ...

Study examines consumption of added sugar, death for cardiovascular disease

2014-02-04
CHICAGO – Many U.S. adults consume more added sugar (added in processing or preparing of foods, not naturally occurring as in fruits and fruit juices) than expert panels recommend for a healthy ...

Effect of lowering blood pressure on risk for cognitive decline in patients with diabetes

2014-02-04
Intensive blood pressure and cholesterol lowering was not associated with reduced risk for diabetes-related cognitive decline in older patients with long-standing type 2 ...

Case report on genetic diagnosis of fatal disorder in embryos before pregnancy

2014-02-04
Genetic testing of embryos for a fatal inherited neurodegenerative disorder allowed a woman to selectively implant two mutation-free embryos and conceive healthy twins, what researchers ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Reading for pleasure in freefall: New study finds 40% drop over two decades

Epigenetic noise: Unappreciated process helps cells change identity

Abrupt Antarctic changes could have ‘catastrophic consequences for generations to come’, experts warn

Saving bees with ‘superfoods’ – engineered supplement boosts colony reproduction

Threats of weather disasters for drug manufacturing facilities in the US

New Cleveland Clinic research identifies link between gut microbes and an elevated risk for abdominal aortic aneurysms

First-of-its-kind supernova reveals innerworkings of a dying star

Drought, extreme heat, and intimate partner violence in low- and middle-income countries

Family socioeconomic position and eating disorder symptoms across adolescence

Blocking brain damage may slow growth of brain cancer

New research could lead to greener, faster metal production

Researchers use electrochemistry to boost nuclear fusion rates​​​​

AI learns biological variability to develop a high-performance serum-free culture medium

Transforming the tip of a mechanical pencil lead into a high-quality electron beam source

From Alzheimer’s to AI: how the TReNDS center at Georgia State is advancing brain research

Integrated analysis of serum and fecal metabolites reveals the role of bile acid metabolism in drug-induced liver injury: Implications for diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers

Industrial pollution’s imprint lasts generations

15 students named national Youth Heart Ambassadors for 2025-26 school year

Do no harm: Rethink treating diabetes, hypertension in frail older adults

Hospitals, sanitation linked to spread of antibiotic resistance in Guatemala

Breaking new ground in stealth technology: KRISS develops core radar components domestically

Global Virus Network launches first-ever “Global Guardians” youth camp to prepare the next generation of virus hunters

The quest for an HIV vaccine

Scientists discover a new crystal that breathes oxygen

Robust isolated quantum spins established on a magnetic substrate

Omega-3’s could protect women against Alzheimer’s

Building a better database to detect designer drugs

Breast tumors tunnel into fat cells to fuel up. Can we stop them?

Study finds heart health declining in older adults with certain cardiovascular diseases

Earth System Models project the start of the Amazon dieback within the 21st century

[Press-News.org] EyeMusic Sensory Substitution Device enables the blind to 'see' colors and shapes
Pleasant auditory representations used, according to study published in Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience