The encyclopedia · Software & IT · Product decision · 2023
Augmental's MouthPad lets you control a computer with your tongue
Augmental's custom 3D-printed MouthPad is an oral trackpad that turns tongue, jaw and head gestures into cursor control for people with impaired hand use.
Augmental · MIT Media Lab
the move
Standard phones and computers assume a hand; for people with impaired hand control, that assumption is the real barrier to independence.
Augmental, an MIT Media Lab spinoff founded by Tomas Vega and Corten Singer, built a custom-fit 3D-printed mouthpiece that acts as a touchpad inside the mouth.
A machine-learning algorithm converts the tongue's position and pressure into cursor actions, augmented by jaw, head and breathing gestures, so the user can type, scroll and select without hands.
It won the Grand Prix in Innovation: Early Stage Technology and a Silver in Health & Wellness at Cannes Lions 2023, plus recognition at the Core77 Design Awards.
why it works
- The tongue has unused, precise dexterity that no assistive device had exploited.
- Combining tongue, jaw, head and breathing gestures covers many kinds of impairment.
- A custom-fit mouthpiece removes the stigma of a clunky external device.
- It took the Innovation Grand Prix and a Health & Wellness Silver at Cannes 2023.
what transfers
For a control interface, pick the body part with the best untapped dexterity and make it sensor-driven. Meet the user's movement range halfway and an auxiliary device becomes a lifeline.
what came after
The MouthPad took the Innovation Grand Prix and a Silver in Health & Wellness at Cannes Lions 2023, won the Core77 Emerging Technologies award and Best Pitch at CES 2024, as Augmental scaled it toward commercial use.
references
- MouthPad recognized at Cannes Lions Awards 2023
- Peru takes the Grand Prix of Innovation at Cannes Lions 2023
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