The Scan Text feature is designed for reading dense or complex documents and recognizing handwritten text. This feature operates by capturing a photo of the text, which is then processed and read aloud as paragraphs. This article explains the following:

What is Scan Text?

Scan Text is ideal for reading official documents, letters, menu cards, brochures, single pages from books, magazines, or newspapers containing text-only content.

When using Scan Text, you can utilize the Smart Guidance setting to position the document correctly. This setting provides directions on how to move the document to capture the full content. The image will be automatically captured once all four corners of the document are detected. Please note: for automatic capture, all four corners must be in view.

Additionally, with the Layout Detection setting, you can identify text elements such as columns and headings, enhancing navigation through structured text.

For even greater functionality, Smart Detection, available with the 2024 Pass or Professional Edition, offers a more advanced experience. Designed to support users who are blind or have low vision, Smart Detection brings text and visual elements to life. Now, Envision Glasses can not only read any document aloud but also detect and describe embedded images, charts, tables, and graphs. Imagine scanning a box of cookies and receiving a detailed description of the packaging, nutrition table, and images—all in one seamless experience.

The scanned text opens in the Reader feature, where you can pause, resume, and navigate through specific sections by swiping back and forth between paragraphs. You can also export the text directly to your Envision App for further use.

Here's a quick video explaining how to get started scanning documents:

Feature Preferences in Scan Text

The preferences for the Scan Text feature are as follows:

Offline Mode

Since the launch of the new 2.2.0 software update, we have added the Scan Text feature as an offline option, which means you can now read any type of document, anywhere. The choice is yours.

We've noticed that many of you are actively using the Envision Glasses while on the go. While it is possible to connect your glasses to your phone's hotspot, we understand that there are times when you don't have the luxury of time or access to a reliable internet connection. That's where the offline features come in handy. Similar to the way you're familiar with using Instant Text, you can now open the Context Menu of Scan Text by doing a two-finger single tap and enable the Offline Mode. Once activated, you can use Scan Text to read any documents offline. Here is a quick video explaining how to start scanning documents in offline mode:

Language Detection

Listen to a piece of text being spoken out in the correct language and voice. This option can be turned on within the context menu of Scan Text and Batch Scan if you're reading text that could be in a different language than your system language. If the same piece of document has multiple languages, the voice will automatically switch between paragraphs. Use this if you come across multilingual documents or when you're traveling abroad and would like to keep your glasses in one language while using Instant Text to scan for a different language.

Smart Detection

Smart Detection replaces the older Layout Detection and significantly enhances document reading by adding alt-text descriptions for visual elements such as images, graphs, charts, and tables. When a table is detected, Smart Detection identifies rows and columns, ensuring a clear understanding of the data and providing a concise summary of the content.

Additionally, Smart Detection maintains the correct reading order for columns and detects headings, offering a more enriched context when reading textbooks, magazines, or reports. To enable Smart Detection, simply activate it in the context menu of the Scan Text feature.

Watch the video below to see how Smart Detection can increase your independence by making complex content, such as product packaging or multi-layered documents, more accessible:

Layout Detection

Layout Detection recognizes columns and headers in text. This option can be turned on within the context menu of Scan Text and Batch Scan if you are reading text that has more than one column or headings. When you are reading menu cards, bank statements, or vertically written text it is better to disable layout detection. Keep in mind that enabling Layout Detection increases the processing time. Here's a quick video that explains Layout Detection in more detail:

Smart Guidance

Scan Text offers guidance in the positioning of the document in front of the glasses. With Smart Guidance you get voice commands on where to move the document you want to scan so that it is correctly captured by the glasses.

Here's a quick video that explains how Smart Guidance works:

Follow the steps to activate Scan Text with Smart Guidance:

Step 1: Go to Scan Text and do a one-finger double tap.

Step 2: The camera is now activated and will start detecting words.

Step 3: Grab a document and hold it in front of you. To do this correctly: Fully stretch out your arm in front of you towards the center of your right eye and make sure to hold it steady. Smart Guidance works by detecting the edges of your document. So make sure to hold the document straight and that the document isn’t bent. You will hear some commands such as 'Move document left', which will guide you to position the document correctly in front of the camera.

Step 4: Once the document is completely on the camera view, a picture will be automatically taken. You will hear a capturing sound, followed by a processing sound, which means that the picture was taken and is being processed.

Step 5: Your text is processed and will be opened in the reader, where you can read it.

Word Detection

With Word Detection, you can understand how much of the text in front of you are captured by the camera and adjust the document accordingly.

Follow the steps to activate Scan Text with word detection:

Step 1: Go to Scan Text and do a one-finger double tap.

Step 2: The camera is now activated and will start detecting words.

Step 3: Grab a document and hold it in front of you. The more words it detects, the higher the frequency of taps that will be played. Keep in mind that the type of document and the amount of words determine the frequency of taps that will be played.

Step 4: Once you think the frequency of the taps will not go any higher, do a one-finger double-tap again to capture the text.

Step 5: Your text is processed and will be opened in the reader, where you can read it.

R‍eader

The Reader automatically opens after the text is scanned. The Reader allows you to scroll through the text and to play and pause the reading. You can use the following gestures in the reader:

One-finger single tap: Play and Pause speech.
Two-finger single tap: Export text to the Envision App.
One-finger swipe forward: Scroll to the next phrase of the scanned text.
One-finger swipe back: Scroll to the previous phrase of the scanned text.

Additional FAQs Scan Text

What is the difference between online and offline Scan Text? You might be wondering about the difference between the online and offline modes for Scan Text. The online version still offers higher accuracy and an additional feature called Layout Detection. Layout Detection recognizes columns and headers in text. This option can be turned on within the context menu of Scan Text and Batch Scan if you are reading text that has more than one column or headings. Enabling this feature is not yet possible with the Scan Text in offline mode.
Do you want to manually take a photo with Scan Text without using Smart Guidance or Word Detection?

Step 1: Go to Scan Text and do a one-finger double-tap.
Step 2: Point the camera to the text that you want to scan and do a one-finger double-tap.
Step 3: You will hear a countdown sound, followed by a capture sound. This means the picture was taken manually and is being processed.
Step 4: Your text is now opened in the reader and you can read through the scanned text.
Do you want to switch Smart Guidance, Word Detection, Language Detection, or Layout Detection on or off? To switch Smart Guidance, Word Detection, Language Detection, or Layout Detection on or off, you will have to open the context menu by doing a two-finger single tap on the Scan Text feature or Batch Scan. Each of these items will be spoken out as you swipe forward or backward with one finger. When you hear the option you want to adjust, you can do a one-finger double-tap to toggle the setting. To confirm the settings, do a one-finger swipe down. This will bring you back to the Scan Text screen and you can start using Scan Text with your preferred way of scanning text. You can also change these settings on the menu Feature Preferences. For this, you need to go to Settings from the main menu, navigate to Feature Preferences and change the behaviour for each setting.

Note: Currently you have to choose between Smart Guidance or Word Detection. So in case you enable Smart Guidance, then Word Detection will be automatically disabled and vice-versa.
Do you want to read handwritten text? The Envision Glasses are also able to read handwritten text, though a doctor’s note might not make the cut! This is not a separate feature but built right into the Scan Text feature. Simply grab a piece of paper, write something on it or grab a Happy Birthday card that you received and scan it by using the Scan Text feature.
How to export scanned text to your phone? The Envision Glasses have the possibility to export the text to the library on the Envision App. Keep in mind that exporting text always requires an internet connection. To export the text follow the steps below:

Step 1: Do a one-finger double-tap on Scan Text and take a scan of the text that you would like to have exported. The text will open in the Reader.
Step 2: Now, in the Reader, do a two-finger single tap, this will export the text.
Step 3: Open your Envision App on your phone.
Step 4: Go to the Envision App library and select Import File and then Import from Glasses. The scanned text will then be available in the library on the Envision App.
Step 5: If needed, you can download the scanned text or share it with other apps on your phone.

Note: This feature works in online and offline mode. For more information on which features do and do not require an Internet connection, see Which features of Envision Glasses need an internet connection? and Which features work without an Internet connection?