Silent augmented narratives

Abstract

Deafness is an often undervalued but increasing problem amongst world’s population. Besides the difficulty in hearing sounds, it involves many cognitive and emotional issues, like learning difficulties, isolation and disempowerment. In this paper, designing artefacts for deaf people is analyzed from two different perspectives: technology and communication science. Regarding technical issues, research shows how Augmented Reality can be applied using screen interfaces or smart glasses translating sounds into visual stimuli; from the communication side, the focus is on storytelling and how it can be combined with the technology referred to engage people, enhance learning activity and create a community. By looking into these two aspects, the suggested approach is to merge them in a conceptual creative project that can be appealing and useful to the public, through the use of interactive storytelling, while also using the visual benefits of an immersive Augmented Reality experience.