project showcase
What does the ball hear?
Bringing the game's energy to life for visually impaired fans using 5G and Spatial Audio
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Overwiew
Time Line
Oct 2021, 48 hours
Disciplines
Product Design,
UX Design,
Accessibility
My Role
UX Research
UI Design,
Business Model,
User Testing
Team Size
5
At&T Hackathon
In October 2021, AT&T hosted a 5G in Sports Hackathon at Butler University in Indianapolis, where participants were challenged to create innovative solutions for enhancing various aspects of sports through technologies like 5G. The teams focused on solving problems across three key areas: Fan Engagement, IoT, and Venue Safety.
Our direction
As a team, we refined the problem statement to focus on enhancing fan engagement through 5G technology, with additional emphasis on addressing the needs of visually impaired fans.
Problem Statement
How might we Improve the overall Fan Engagement for the game of BASKETBALL using 5G technology and extend the engagement to the visually impaired?
Key Features
Sensors embedded within the ball capture its location on the court, along with audio of the ball bouncing, player movements, and player interactions.
A 5G network with low latency ensures a real-time, seamless experience for fans.
The location and audio data are used to create a spatial audio experience, allowing visually impaired fans to experience the game through sound.
Process
Pain Points of Baksetball Fans
01 -
EXPENSIVE COURT SIDE TICKETS
Court-side experience is too expensive for the average fan.
The experience in the bleachers is not complete
especially in terms of audio. Commentary and audience noise often drowns out gameplay sounds.
02 - ENGAGEMENT OF VISUALLY IMPAIRED FANS
Visually impaired fans rely on radio commentary to understand the game or have a sighted companion accompanying them who narrate the game. Additionally there is a Secondary Audio Programming (SAP) broadcast which includes an audio description track in addition to TV audio.
Technology Research
01 -
SMART BASKETBALL
The 94Fifty Smart Basketball Sensor and Wilson X connected basketball can be used for shot perfection.
The basketball is charged through wireless charging.
The basketball is charged through wireless charging.
02 -
SPATIAL AUDIO
Apple AirPods Pro and Beats promise a surround sound experience.Though their current applications are mainly limited to music and entertainment.
03 -
ENGAGING VISUALLY IMPAIRED AT THE VENUE
Samsung and IrisVision have collaborated on a headset that records video and replays a magnified version helping legally blind fans experience the match.
Foot braille uses haptic technology and tactile graphics to extend fan engagement for football.
Foot braille uses haptic technology and tactile graphics to extend fan engagement for football.
04 -
MACHINE LEARNING AND IOT
Deep learning has been used to track player movement across the court to identify defense and offense strategies.
Accessibility Research
01 -
Experiencing the game through sound
The visually impaired can identify the differences in the sound vibrations based on the surface it is reflected off. Thus identifying the difference between an empty space vs an obstacle.
02 -
HIGH rate of Hearing
The visually impaired, on an average can comprehend speech sped up to 25 syllables per second vs others who can process maximum of 10 syllables.
The cerebral cortex that normally responds to vision responds to speech for the blind.
02 -
Games for the BLIND
Bell Basketball - a basketball with embedded audio enables the visually impaired to play basketball by tracking the position of the ball via its sound.
Beep Baseball - The ball and the bases emit a beeping sound acting as beacons to help the visually impaired play.
Beep Baseball - The ball and the bases emit a beeping sound acting as beacons to help the visually impaired play.
Personas
On completing our user and market analysis, we identified two different categories of users whose Fan Experience can be significantly improved:
1. The Visually impaired
2. Sighted Fans
We then created the personas for the two identified sets of users which formed the basis of our ideation process.
1. The Visually impaired
2. Sighted Fans
We then created the personas for the two identified sets of users which formed the basis of our ideation process.
Brainstorming & Ideation
On analyzing the different user requirements - Their pains and gains, we thought about ways in which we could provide the court-side experience to everyone by enhancing the audio experience. The technologies like spatial audio and Machine learning made it a feasible area to explore in.
From an accessibility standpoint, We looked into two distinct ways to help better experience the game.
1. Using Tactile Graphics and Refreshable Braille
2. Spatial Audio
We got both the ideas validated by domain experts which helped in narrowing down to the final solution.
From an accessibility standpoint, We looked into two distinct ways to help better experience the game.
1. Using Tactile Graphics and Refreshable Braille
2. Spatial Audio
We got both the ideas validated by domain experts which helped in narrowing down to the final solution.
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REFRESHABLE BRAILLE
SME Evaluations
The concepts were validated by four accessibility experts, whose insights helped refine the project direction, balancing the impact and feasibility of the solution from both technological and business perspectives.
Cost of Tactile Graphics
"Tactile graphics are very expensive and not very accessible"
- Expert user 1
Noise Reduction
"Spatial audio will definitely help improve fan experience as long as unwanted noise is filtered properly"
- Expert user 3
Complexity of Tactile Graphics
"Tactile graphics may not add to the experience. You will need to create codes to differentiate teams/ball and that would involve a learning curve for the visually impaired"
- Expert user 2
Innovative Solution
"Combining existing technology to improve fan engagement is very innovative"
- Expert user 4
User Study
To simulate the experience of watching a live game without visual cues, we tested blindfolded participants, asking them to describe the game solely based on what they could hear.
Insights:
• A solid understanding of the game was essential for accurately interpreting what was happening on the court.
• Participants could identify the ball's location on the court and track passes between players.
• Audience and player noise were found to be misleading, making it difficult to draw accurate conclusions about game events.
•Periods of game suspension were confusing, as there were no distinct audio cues to signal these breaks.
Insights:
• A solid understanding of the game was essential for accurately interpreting what was happening on the court.
• Participants could identify the ball's location on the court and track passes between players.
• Audience and player noise were found to be misleading, making it difficult to draw accurate conclusions about game events.
•Periods of game suspension were confusing, as there were no distinct audio cues to signal these breaks.
Final Solution
After consulting with accessibility experts, we focused on spatial audio as our solution. This approach not only extends the experience to visually impaired fans but also offers an affordable option. Our research showed that the visually impaired can process and identify sound more quickly, supporting our choice.
We then explored ways to enhance the audio experience, considering options such as strategically placed microphones around the court, embedding sensors in shoes or flooring, or hanging them from the ceiling. Ultimately, we decided to integrate a sensor inside the basketball for optimal results.
We then explored ways to enhance the audio experience, considering options such as strategically placed microphones around the court, embedding sensors in shoes or flooring, or hanging them from the ceiling. Ultimately, we decided to integrate a sensor inside the basketball for optimal results.
UI Design
Business Model Canvas
We aimed to also identify a ways to ensure that the companies have a good reason to invest in our solution in a way that they gain their profits while allowing our users to get a better fan engagement and meeting all their needs. In order to do so, we came up with a business model canvas as shown below.
As shown in the BMC, There are additional revenue streams introduced for a sports company with this solution in place. These revenue streams identified include the profit gained increased seating cost and with virtual seats, percentage revenue from the sale of headsets and from application download. We ensured that the users do not have to spend a lot to obtain the experience they deserve and they could stream the services from the devices already available at home.
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