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Deaf Communication
ECHO Voice
Adaptive Communication Accelerator for the Deaf
The world's first ISL-to-Tamil speech system. Wrist-mounted sonar + AR glasses. Dramatically more affordable than camera-based alternatives.
Concept · Seeking collaborators
6M+
ISL users in India who lack accessible communication tools
The problem
There are no certified ISL (Indian Sign Language) interpreters in most hospitals, banks, and government offices. Deaf individuals are forced to rely on family members — often children — to interpret in critical situations. Existing sign-to-speech systems only support ASL, not ISL.
Our approach
ECHO Voice is the world's first ISL-to-Tamil speech bridge. A wrist-mounted sonar sensor captures hand geometry in 3D. AR glasses overlay context. The system translates signs to spoken Tamil, Hindi, or English in real time — at a fraction of the cost of camera-based alternatives like BrightSign.
How it would work
1
ISL-to-Speech
First-of-its-kind Indian Sign Language recognition that outputs spoken Tamil, Hindi, or English.
2
Wrist Sonar + AR
Wrist-mounted sonar captures hand shapes without cameras. AR glasses add visual context and captions.
3
Radically Affordable
At Rs.29,400 vs Rs.2.6L+ for camera-based systems like BrightSign, ECHO Voice is accessible for community deployment.
4
Offline Capable
Core translation runs on-device — works in rural areas without internet.
Help us build ECHO Voice
ECHO Voice is a concept born from 10 years of fieldwork with children and families. It exists as a research proposal — not yet a product.
We are looking for researchers, engineering teams, sponsors, and institutional partners to move this from idea to reality. If this problem matters to you, we would love to hear from you.