Beyond Hearing

Hearing loss is a pervasive global challenge, impacting one in six individuals in the UK and an astounding 448 million people worldwide classified as hard-of-hearing. Our focused inquiry within this widespread concern centers on a critical aspect: sound localization. Through comprehensive stakeholder interviews, 80% of respondents emphasized the pervasive and significant impact of sound localization issues on their daily lives.

Sound localization is not merely an auditory capability; it signifies the fundamental capacity to discern the origin of sound—an ability often taken for granted by those with unimpaired hearing. This overlooked aspect becomes particularly critical when considering safety implications. Research indicates that hard-of-hearing individuals are 30% more likely to experience accidents on the road compared to their hearing counterparts. This statistic hits close to home, resonating with my personal experience, as my sister is among those facing this heightened risk.

For the hard-of-hearing and Deaf communities, the challenge of compromised sound localization translates into profound limitations in spatial awareness, jeopardizing safety, hindering effective communication, and diminishing overall quality of life.

The scale of this problem affects millions globally and posing a formidable barrier to full societal participation for a substantial portion of the population. Local and global statistics underscore the gravity of this issue, emphasizing a critical need for innovative solutions that transcend the capabilities of traditional hearing aids.

Regrettably, there is currently no mature product addressing the sound localization problem for hard-of-hearing individuals. This gap in available solutions underscores the urgency and opportunity for Beyond Hearing to pioneer an innovative, life-changing approach to sound localization and significantly impact the lives of millions globally.

Beyond Hearing stands as an innovative solution—a set of augmented reality (AR) glasses meticulously crafted to empower individuals with hearing difficulties, particularly those who are Deaf. Our innovation is a departure from traditional auditory aids; it is a visual augmentation tool designed to redefine the auditory experience for the hard-of-hearing community.

What is Beyond Hearing? Beyond Hearing is not just a pair of AR glasses; it is a gateway to a world of enhanced sound perception. The technology seamlessly integrates into the user's daily life, providing a visual representation of sound locations. Picture this as an intuitive, real-time mapping of auditory cues directly into the user's field of vision.

How Does it Work? The AR glasses use spatial computing to detect and analyze sounds in the user's environment. When a sound occurs, Beyond Hearing translates it into a visual cue. For instance, if a car honks behind the user, a visual indicator appears, instantly alerting them to the sound's direction and proximity. In a group conversation, the glasses identify the speaker, providing a dynamic and visual aid for effective communication.

Key Features:

• Spatial Awareness: Beyond Hearing enhances spatial awareness by visually indicating the source and direction of sounds in real-time.
• Conversation Focus: In group settings, the glasses identify the speaker, allowing users to effortlessly focus on the person talking.
• Safety Alert: Crucially, the technology acts as a safety net by providing visual alerts for critical sounds, such as approaching vehicles.

Innovation in Action: Check out our video demonstration here to witness Beyond Hearing in action. The video showcases how the AR glasses seamlessly integrate into daily scenarios, offering users a transformative experience in navigating their auditory environment.

Beyond Hearing goes beyond addressing the problem of sound localization; it revolutionizes the way individuals with hearing difficulties perceive and interact with the world. This solution is not merely a technological advancement; it is a paradigm shift towards inclusivity, independence, and an enriched sensory experience for the hard-of-hearing community.

Target Population and Impact of Beyond Hearing:

Beyond Hearing is purposefully designed to serve and empower individuals within the Deaf and hard-of-hearing communities, addressing a critical gap in their access to sound localization. These communities represent a segment of society that is often underserved, facing significant challenges in navigating their auditory environments with confidence and safety.

Who are they? 

Our target population includes individuals who are Deaf or hard-of-hearing, encompassing a diverse range of ages, backgrounds, and experiences. Despite the advancements in assistive hearing technology, many individuals within these communities still encounter barriers to full societal participation due to limitations in sound localization.

How are they currently underserved? 

The current landscape of auditory aids falls short in adequately addressing the nuanced needs of the Deaf and hard-of-hearing populations, particularly concerning sound localization. This lack of access to accurate and intuitive sound localization deprives individuals of essential spatial awareness, compromising their safety, communication, and overall quality of life. Existing solutions have not effectively bridged this gap, leaving many individuals within these communities feeling isolated and vulnerable in their daily interactions.

How will the solution impact their lives? 

Beyond Hearing represents a transformative leap forward in addressing the needs of the Deaf and hard-of-hearing populations. By leveraging augmented reality and spatial computing, our solution provides intuitive visual cues that empower individuals to understand the origin and direction of sound in their environment. This newfound capability enhances their spatial awareness, enabling them to navigate their surroundings with confidence, engage in group conversations more effectively, and ultimately, live more independently.

Moreover, Beyond Hearing has the potential to extend its benefits beyond the Deaf and hard-of-hearing communities. As technology evolves, it can be adapted to provide supplementary awareness for hearing individuals in various scenarios, such as navigating urban environments with noise-canceling headphones. By fostering inclusivity and accessibility for all, Beyond Hearing transcends boundaries and creates a more equitable and inclusive society.

In essence, Beyond Hearing is poised to make a profound and meaningful impact on the lives of millions, bridging the gap in auditory accessibility and empowering individuals to fully participate in the world around them.

Team's Proximity and Community-Centric Approach:

Our team is uniquely positioned to deliver Beyond Hearing due to our deep personal connections and proximity to the communities we serve. At the helm is the Team Lead, who brings more than just professional expertise but a personal understanding of the challenges faced by individuals within the Deaf and hard-of-hearing communities. With a sibling who is hard of hearing, the Team Lead intimately understands the daily struggles and barriers encountered by this population, fueling a profound motivation to drive positive change and improve their quality of life.

Community-Centric Design and Implementation:

Beyond Hearing's design and implementation are rooted in meaningful collaboration and engagement with the Deaf community. Rather than imposing preconceived solutions, we have adopted a community-centric approach, actively seeking input, ideas, and feedback from individuals within the Deaf and hard-of-hearing communities. Through extensive interviews, focus groups, and co-creation sessions, we gained invaluable insights into their unique needs, challenges, and aspirations.

Guided by Community Input: The design and development of Beyond Hearing have been guided by the voices and experiences of the communities we serve. From the conceptualization phase to prototyping and testing, community input has been integral every step of the way. This collaborative approach ensures that our solution is not only technically sound but also deeply resonant and impactful for its intended users.

Representation and Empowerment: Moreover, our team composition reflects the diversity and richness of the communities we serve. We have intentionally sought to include individuals with diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives, ensuring that our team is representative of the populations we aim to empower. By centering the voices and experiences of the Deaf and hard-of-hearing communities in our team and design process, we uphold the principles of inclusivity, equity, and empowerment.

In summary, our team's personal connections, community-centric approach, and commitment to meaningful collaboration ensure that Beyond Hearing is not just a technical solution but a deeply empathetic and impactful intervention that truly serves the needs of the Deaf and hard-of-hearing communities.

Beyond Hearing now is in prototype stage. 

Built and Tested Solutions:

We have successfully developed and iteratively refined prototype versions of Beyond Hearing, leveraging cutting-edge augmented reality (AR) technology to create an intuitive and effective solution for sound localization. Through rigorous testing and feedback sessions with members of the Deaf and hard-of-hearing communities, we are now fine-tuning the user interface, functionality, and performance of our solution to ensure optimal usability and effectiveness.

Beneficiaries Served:

To date, we have directly engaged with a diverse group of beneficiaries, including individuals who are Deaf or hard-of-hearing, as well as relevant stakeholders such as advocacy groups, healthcare professionals, and accessibility experts. These engagements have allowed us to gather invaluable insights, validate user needs, and refine our solution based on real-world feedback and user experiences.

Reasons for Applying to Solve:

We are applying to Solve because we recognize the immense potential for collaboration and support offered by this platform to address the critical challenges faced by individuals with hearing loss. With 448 million people worldwide affected by this issue, the need for innovative solutions, such as Beyond Hearing, has never been more urgent.

Barriers and Opportunities:

Despite the widespread prevalence of hearing loss and the significant impact of sound localization challenges on the safety and quality of life of individuals with hearing impairments, existing solutions remain limited and underdeveloped. The lack of mature products addressing this specific problem represents a significant barrier to progress.

By partnering with Solve, we aim to overcome these barriers by accessing the financial, technical, and strategic support needed to advance Beyond Hearing from concept to market-ready solution. Specifically, we seek support in further refining our prototype, scaling our impact, and expanding our reach to underserved communities.

Collaborative Opportunities with Solve:

Through Solve's extensive network of partners and resources, we envision opportunities to collaborate with leading experts, organizations, and institutions in the fields of assistive technology, healthcare, and accessibility. This collaboration will enable us to tap into diverse perspectives, leverage specialized expertise, and access critical resources necessary to accelerate the development and deployment of Beyond Hearing.

Impact and Innovation:

With Solve's support, Beyond Hearing can revolutionize the landscape of auditory accessibility, empowering individuals with hearing impairments to navigate their environments with confidence and independence. By addressing the unmet needs of this underserved population, Beyond Hearing not only enhances safety and quality of life but also promotes inclusivity, equity, and social impact on a global scale.

In summary, we believe that partnering with Solve represents a unique opportunity to catalyze transformative change, drive innovation, and create meaningful impact for millions of individuals worldwide affected by hearing loss. Together, we can unlock new possibilities and pave the way for a more inclusive and accessible future.

Beyond Hearing represents a paradigm shift in addressing the challenge of sound localization among individuals with hearing impairments. What sets our solution apart is its innovative combination of cutting-edge technologies, including augmented reality (AR), sensory technology, and machine learning.

1. Integration of AR Technology: Beyond Hearing leverages AR technology to provide a visually intuitive solution to the sound localization problem. By overlaying visual cues in the user's field of view, our solution offers a novel approach that enhances spatial awareness and situational understanding for individuals with hearing impairments.

2. Sensor Technology and Machine Learning: Our solution incorporates sensor technology and machine learning algorithms to accurately detect and localize sound sources in real-time. This advanced functionality goes beyond traditional hearing aids, which primarily focus on amplifying sound, by offering precise spatial information that empowers users to identify the direction and proximity of sounds.

3. User-Centric Design: Beyond Hearing is designed with the end-user in mind, prioritizing usability, comfort, and accessibility. By providing a seamless and intuitive user experience, our solution addresses the unique needs and challenges faced by individuals with hearing impairments, fostering greater independence and confidence in navigating their environments.

Broader Positive Impacts and Market Landscape:

The innovative approach of Beyond Hearing has the potential to catalyze broader positive impacts within the assistive technology space and beyond. By demonstrating the feasibility and effectiveness of integrating AR, sensor technology, and machine learning in addressing specific challenges faced by individuals with hearing impairments, our solution could inspire similar innovations in related fields.

Furthermore, Beyond Hearing has the power to transform the market landscape by redefining the expectations and capabilities of hearing aids and assistive devices. As awareness of our solution spreads and its benefits become more widely recognized, we anticipate a shift towards more inclusive and technologically advanced solutions within the hearing aid market, ultimately improving accessibility and quality of life for individuals with hearing impairments on a global scale.

Theory of Change for Beyond Hearing:

At Beyond Hearing, our theory of change is grounded in a robust understanding of the problem of sound localization among individuals with hearing impairments and the transformative potential of our innovative solution. Through a systematic approach that integrates user feedback, expert consultation, and rigorous testing, we have developed a clear pathway for how and why we expect our solution to have a meaningful impact on the problem.

1. User-Centric Design and Testing: Our solution begins with a focus on the end-user, with user testing involving over 200 individuals. Through these interactions, we have observed firsthand the positive impact of Beyond Hearing in enhancing users' awareness of surrounding sounds, improving their spatial perception, and fostering greater confidence and independence in navigating their environments.

2. Expert Consultation and Technological Advancements: In collaboration with leading sound experts from Imperial College London, we have refined the sound analysis component of our solution to ensure optimal accuracy and reliability in detecting and presenting sound localization. By leveraging cutting-edge technologies such as augmented reality and machine learning, we are developing an innovative solution that offers a novel approach to addressing the challenges of sound localization among individuals with hearing impairments.

3. Immediate Outputs and Long-Term Outcomes: The immediate outputs of our solution include the development and deployment of Beyond Hearing AR glasses, equipped with advanced sound localization capabilities. In the short term, we anticipate a direct impact on users' ability to perceive and locate sounds in their environment, thereby enhancing their safety, communication, and overall quality of life.

4. Longer-Term Outcomes: Looking ahead, we envision broader and more profound outcomes resulting from the widespread adoption of Beyond Hearing. By empowering individuals with hearing impairments to fully participate in social, educational, and professional settings, our solution has the potential to break down barriers, promote inclusivity, and drive positive societal change. Ultimately, we aspire to create a world where sound accessibility is a fundamental right for all individuals, regardless of their hearing abilities.

In summary, our theory of change for Beyond Hearing is rooted in a comprehensive understanding of the problem, informed by user insights and expert consultation, and driven by a commitment to leveraging technology for social impact. Through a strategic and iterative approach, we are confident in our ability to deliver tangible and lasting benefits to our target population and catalyze positive change on a global scale.

Impact Goals for Beyond Hearing:

1. Enhancing Safety and Engagement: Our primary impact goal is to significantly enhance the safety and engagement of individuals with hearing impairments by providing them with advanced sound localization capabilities. Through the adoption of Beyond Hearing AR glasses, we aim to empower users to navigate their environments with greater confidence, independence, and awareness of surrounding sounds.

2. Improving Quality of Life: We aspire to improve the overall quality of life for individuals with hearing impairments by fostering greater inclusivity and participation in social, educational, and professional settings. By enabling users to effectively perceive and locate sounds in real-time, we seek to mitigate the challenges and limitations imposed by hearing loss, thereby promoting greater autonomy and well-being.

Measuring Progress:

1. User Feedback and Satisfaction: We measure our progress towards our impact goals by collecting ongoing user feedback and satisfaction surveys. Through qualitative assessments, we seek to understand users' perceptions of the effectiveness and usability of Beyond Hearing in enhancing their safety and engagement with sound activities.

2. Safety Incidents and Accidents: Another key indicator of our progress is the reduction in safety incidents and accidents among users with hearing impairments. By tracking and analyzing data on safety-related incidents before and after the adoption of Beyond Hearing, we aim to quantify the tangible impact of our solution on enhancing user safety and mitigating risks associated with impaired sound localization.

3. Social Inclusion and Participation: We also measure our progress towards our impact goals by assessing changes in users' social inclusion and participation levels. Through qualitative interviews and surveys, we seek to understand the extent to which Beyond Hearing enables users to participate more fully in social interactions, educational activities, and professional environments, thus contributing to their overall sense of belonging and well-being.

By systematically tracking these indicators and continuously refining our solution based on user feedback and insights, we are committed to achieving meaningful and measurable impact for individuals with hearing impairments and catalyzing positive change in their lives.

Core Technology of Beyond Hearing:

At the heart of Beyond Hearing lies a cutting-edge fusion of innovative technologies aimed at revolutionizing the experience of sound localization for individuals with hearing impairments.

Augmented Reality (AR): Beyond Hearing harnesses the power of augmented reality to provide users with real-time visual cues that enhance their spatial awareness and enable them to accurately perceive the location and direction of sounds in their environment. By overlaying digital information onto the physical world, our AR glasses create an immersive and intuitive interface for users to interact with and interpret auditory stimuli.

Sound Sensory Technology: Complementing our AR platform is advanced sound sensory technology, which enables Beyond Hearing to capture, analyze, and interpret acoustic signals.

Integrated Hardware and Software: Beyond Hearing seamlessly integrates hardware components, such as microphones, with sophisticated software algorithms to deliver a seamless and intuitive user experience. Our proprietary software architecture enables efficient data processing, seamless synchronization of audiovisual cues, and seamless interaction with the AR interface, ensuring optimal performance and reliability in diverse real-world environments.

By leveraging this powerful combination of AR, sound sensory technology, and human-centered design principles, Beyond Hearing represents a transformative leap forward in the field of assistive technology, empowering individuals with hearing impairments to navigate the world with confidence, autonomy, and dignity.

1 person. Additionally, we have enlisted the expertise of various advisors with diverse backgrounds. These advisors include a business consultant, a VR/AR developer, a sound expert from Imperial College London, and a business strategist. Together, this collaborative team brings a breadth of knowledge and experience to ensure the success of our solution."

2 years.

Fostering Diversity and Inclusion at Beyond Hearing:

At Beyond Hearing, diversity, equity, and inclusion are integral to our core values. Our inclusive environment encourages open communication and mutual respect, fostering a sense of belonging for all team members. We are committed to ongoing efforts to promote diversity and eliminate barriers to opportunity, striving to create a workplace where everyone feels empowered to contribute and succeed. Through these initiatives, we aim to harness the power of diverse perspectives to drive innovation and achieve our mission of enhancing accessibility for all.

Our business model is strategically designed to maximize both social impact and revenue generation. Initially, we will adopt a direct-to-consumer (B2C) approach, engaging directly with end-users to deliver our innovative hardware and software solutions. By targeting individuals with hearing impairments, we aim to demonstrate the transformative power of our AR technology in enhancing sound accessibility and improving quality of life.

Through this direct sales model, we will not only provide tangible benefits to our customers but also gather valuable feedback to refine our products and drive continuous innovation. This approach allows us to establish a strong market presence, build brand loyalty, and generate early revenue streams to support further research and development efforts.

In the subsequent phase, we will leverage strategic partnerships and collaborations to transition to a business-to-business (B2B) model. By licensing our technology to leading augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR) companies, we can scale our impact exponentially and reach a wider audience of users worldwide. This strategic shift will facilitate the integration of our solution into existing AR/MR ecosystems, unlocking new opportunities for growth and market expansion.

Overall, our business model aligns with our mission to drive positive social change while ensuring sustainable growth and long-term success in the competitive technology landscape."

Our strategy for financial sustainability revolves around a phased approach. Initially, we are applying the £50,000 funding from UKRI (UK Research and Innovation) to advance our product development. Following this, we plan to generate revenue through direct sales to consumers, capitalizing on our innovative AR solution's market potential. In the long term, we aim to secure sustainable revenue streams by licensing our technology to major AR companies, ensuring widespread adoption and scalability.