During this year's Super Bowl on Sunday, some blind and low-vision fans will be able to experience football more directly thanks to tactile devices that vibrate to indicate the position of the ball on the field.
The devices, which are designed by Seattle startup OneCourt, vibrate in different ways for different plays like tackles, touchdowns, and field goals.
Fans can lay their hands flat on the tablet and feel the ball move through a relief map of the field, as well as press an info button to hear the score, the down, and the time remaining.
"One really unique feature that we are showcasing at the Super Bowl is real-time radio, which will stream through the device," OneCourt CEO Jerred Mace told Dezeen.
OneCourt uses play-by-play tracking data that the NFL already uses for statistics and sports betting. Then, it immediately translates it into haptic feedback on a device the size of a tablet, where hundreds of motors vibrate in unique patterns for plays.
Thanks to a partnership with the NFL and Ticketmaster, OneCourt has been piloting the technology during the NFL's regular season at various games hosted by the Seattle Seahawks, the San Francisco 49ers, Atlanta Falcons and others.
Now, the same technology will be available to about ten fans at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, where the Seattle Seahawks will play the New England Patriots on February 8.
An estimated one million Americans today are legally blind, while six million live with low vision – a chronic visual impairment that cannot be corrected with glasses, contacts, or medical treatments.
Historically, these people have only been able to experience sports by listening to the live radio broadcast. The tactile devices provide one more option, and its creators believe it should become a new standard in accessibility.
Jerred Mace founded OneCourt in 2021, after watching a viral video of a sighted soccer fan at a match guiding the hands of her blind friend over a cardboard model of the field. The company's haptic devices have since been used at basketball and football events (with partnerships with the NBA and the NFL).
The team has also tested them at baseball games and soccer matches, with hockey up next. The device's versatility is made possible thanks to the device's interchangeable surface, which peels off to enable the team to seamlessly switch between different sports.
"The football tactile graphic features tactile numbers and braille indicators for the major yard lines, a dotted texture in the endzone, and a gap for the field goal markers," Mace said.
For now, OneCourt relies on partnerships with various sports teams. They are also developing and testing a version of the tablet that fans can use at home, with pre-orders coming up later this year.
Dezeen recently spoke to Levi's Stadium HNTB architect Lanson Nichols ahead of Super Bowl 60 and Peter Eisenman about the design of State Farm Stadium, which hosted Super Bowl 57.
The photography is courtesy of OneCourt