TIP students bag 2nd prize at HooHacks Hackathon with sign language translator app

A group of Technological Institute of the Philippines (TIP) students bagged the second prize at the University of Virginia's HooHacks Hackathon 2021 with their sign language translator app.

The winners were second year information technology students Manuel James Morillo, Melchizedek Recalde, Ciandra Pancho, and James Bonnel Reyes.

With the guidance of their coach Jenelyn Aranas, they bested teams from across the globe in the competition's Accessibility and Empowerment Prize Track Category with SignTech.

SignTech, a sign language translator, is an app designed to help deaf and mute individuals talk to those who can hear and speak through videos, sound, and text.

According to a press release, the application has four features which make it accessible for both hearing and non-hearing people.

Through Learn, users will access video tutorials and articles on sign language. It will also show deaf and mute-friendly establishments nearby through the Maps section.

Sign language can also be video recorded and translated while spoken words can be converted to text.

The group decided to join the competition not just for the benefit of people with disabilities, but also for others to understand sign language as means of communication.

"[It will] also help everyone else understand sign language, bridging the communication gap between deaf-and-mute individuals and non-disabled people," the release read.

According to the HooHacks website, the Accessibility and Empowerment category is made to help people with disabilities, those in poverty, and members of the marginalized or minority groups.

—Franchesca Viernes/MGP, GMA News