Four stations on the Docklands Light Railway are to be used to trial new NaviLens technology. This is an app which is designed to help blind or partially sighted customers to navigate stations and comes as part of a partnership with GoMedia (a subsidiary of Icomera) and The Royal National Institute of Blind People.
The trail will be taking place at Cutty Sark, Canary Wharf, Woolwich Arsenal and Tower Gateway stations and will last for six months. The technology has previously been successfully used in New York Metro, Barcelona and Los Angeles and has also been used beyond transport, including on some Kellogg’s packaging, to provide ingredient information.
NaviLens is designed to enable blind and partially sighted people to access and locate information and interact with their environment. Its based on image recognition using augmented smart codes, placed along designated customer itineraries, and a smartphone app that provides voice guidance for visually impaired passengers. Once the smart codes have been scanned using the NaviLens apps, users can benefit from the help of the app’s voice assistant to continue the journey, the voice assistant having told them practical information including description of a physical element, guidance indications and real-time DLR arrivals and departures.
The trail will be supported by audio announcements at stations, members of staff at Woolwich Arsenal and Passenger Service Agents that are onboard all DLR trains to assist passengers. The technology could also be used to support those hampered by language barriers or passengers unfamiliar with London as the app can transmit the information encapsulated in the smart codes in augmented reality and in 33 different languages.
Tom Page, General Manager of the DLR at TfL, said: “Customers are at the heart of everything we do. With step-free access across the DLR network, the NaviLens technology will allow us to use four stations to trial how we can best serve everyone, including those with accessibility needs or needing to access information in other languages. NaviLens will work alongside Passenger Service Agents that are onboard all DLR trains, and we will work with our partners KeolisAmey Docklands, GoMedia and The Royal National Institute of Blind People to review the trial once it has concluded.”
Andrew Dickinson, Service Delivery Director at KeolisAmey Docklands, added: “KeolisAmey Docklands is excited to trial the innovative NaviLens technology in partnership with GoMedia, RNIB and Transport for London. We are proud to operate the DLR serving our customers, communities and businesses in east London. We continually look to improve and make the railway even more accessible to all. This trial is an exciting partnership collaboratively working to improve the customer experience for those who are partially sighted or fully blind. By embracing and building on technological developments we can build the connectivity of the Docklands area to those living around it. We will also be developing the trial to see how it can help us with other areas of customer communication and provision of service information.”