An Information Delivery System on Disaster for Hearing-Impaired People Using LED Display – To Extend to Universal Use –

Yuko Hiramatsu; Atsushi Ito; Akira Sasaki; Naoto Kawasaki; Koichi Tsunoda; Soutaro Sekimoto; Fumihiro Sato

doi:10.13052/jsn2445-9739.2019.001

Yuko Hiramatsu Chuo University, 742-1 Higashinakano, Hachioji-shi, Tokyo, Japan
Atsushi Ito Utsunomiya University, 7-1-2 Yoto, Utsunomiya-shi, Tochigi, Japan
Akira Sasaki GClue Inc., Aizuwakamatsu, Fukushima, Japan
Naoto Kawasaki Utsunomiya University, 7-1-2 Yoto, Utsunomiya-shi, Tochigi, Japan
Koichi Tsunoda Tokyo Medical Center, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Soutaro Sekimoto Tokyo Medical Center, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Fumihiro Sato

DOI: https://doi.org/10.13052/jsn2445-9739.2019.001

Keywords: BLE, advertisement, ad hoc network, LED display, disaster information delivery system

Abstract

There is a sudden blackout on the big disaster. Under such circumstances, people get information verbally by voice, megaphone, and radio instead of looking at screen on PC smartphone, or TV by their eyes. After the big disasters, people have to find a safe place using voice announcements. However, hearing-impaired people cannot get information from voice announcements. Also, it is difficult to distinguish hearing-impaired people from others by their appearances. Therefore, they have little chance to be supported by others. We have researched and created a system for hearing-impaired people get information on the disaster using an LED display. Also, we found such a system is useful for elders and foreigners, too. People cannot use their smartphones as usual because of a shortage of their battery under disinters. Our system was designed to save battery using Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and small CPU. Besides, people will co-operate, looking at the same screen under the disaster situation.

Author Biographies

Yuko Hiramatsu, Chuo University, 742-1 Higashinakano, Hachioji-shi, Tokyo, Japan

Yuko Hiramatsu received B.S. and M.S. degrees in Literature from Sophia University in 1979 and 1985, respectively. She has been a secretariat staff of “Study Group of School Trip” since 2006. She was an adviser for the utilization of ICT in Okinawa in the subsidy project of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications in Japan from 2007 to 2009. She belongs to the Faculty of Economics, Chuo University as a lecturer from 2009. Her current research interest is sightseeing support technology and linguistic landscape for inbound visitors.

Atsushi Ito, Utsunomiya University, 7-1-2 Yoto, Utsunomiya-shi, Tochigi, Japan

Atsushi Ito received B.S. and M.S. degrees from Nagoya University in 1981 and 1983, respectively. He also received a Ph.D. degree from Hiroshima City University in 2007. From 1983 to 2014, he was with Research and Development Laboratories of KDDI Corporation. He is now a Professor of the Graduate School of Engineering of Utsunomiya University from 2014. During 1991–1992, he was a visiting scholar at the Center for the Study of Language and Information (CSLI) of Stanford University. His current research interests include an open platform for mobile communications, ad hoc networking, user interface design, and ICT based agriculture.

Akira Sasaki, GClue Inc., Aizuwakamatsu, Fukushima, Japan

Akira Sasaki received B.S. degrees in Computer Science and Engineering from the University of Aizu in 2001. He established GClue Inc. in 2001 to develop mobile phone applications. From 2001, he is the CEO of GClue Inc. From 2014, he is a part-time lecturer at Utsunomiya University. In 2015, he established FaBo Inc. as CEO to develop an open-source hardware framework. His research interests include open source technology, middleware of mobile phone platforms, and IoT devices.

Naoto Kawasaki, Utsunomiya University, 7-1-2 Yoto, Utsunomiya-shi, Tochigi, Japan

Naoto Kawasaki received the B.S. degrees in Engineering (Computer Science) from the Utsunomiya University in 2019. He studied an ad hoc network using BLE. He is now working for the prefectural office of Miyagi.

Koichi Tsunoda, Tokyo Medical Center, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, Japan

Koichi Tsunoda MD, Ph.D., is a physician, otolaryngologist, and phonosurgery. Since 2003 Chairman of Department of Artificial Organs and Medical Creations, National Hospital Organization (NHO) Tokyo Medical Center.

Soutaro Sekimoto, Tokyo Medical Center, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, Japan

Soutaro Sekimoto received his B.Eng. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Electro-Communications in 1970, and a Ph.D. degree in Medical Science from The University of Tokyo in 1993. He worked as an assistant professor at the School of Medicine University of Tokyo from 1971 to 2012. His specialties are speech science, cognitive neuroscience, computer science, and electronics.

Fumihiro Sato

Fumihiro Sato received B.S. degrees in Education from Waseda University in 1974. After then, he had been worked for the public organization, Japan Information Processing Development Center, and has been researching the methodology of ICT education for 20 years. In 1994, he moved to Chuo University and had been conducting research on Distance Education and e-learning with some universities in Southeast Asia. Since 1999, he is a professor of the Faculty of Economics, Chuo University.

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