KLcube announced on the 24th that it has introduced an AI sign language avatar guidance service and a real-time sign language interpretation linkage function at Seoul Medical Center. This project has been promoted as part of the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s “Testbed Seoul” demonstration project, with a focus on simultaneously improving information accessibility and medical service convenience for people with hearing impairments.

The AI sign language service implemented at Seoul Medical Center has been expanded in stages, starting in January with the introduction of a QR code-based location guidance service and real-time sign language interpretation linkage function, and in April with the additional installation of 3D sign language avatar kiosks.

First, the QR code-based sign language guidance service can be accessed by scanning the codes installed at the hospital’s main and rear entrances with a smartphone. It provides 3D sign language avatar videos guiding users to key hospital facilities such as the information desk, registration and payment counters, admission and discharge counters, blood collection room, radiology department, and health promotion center, and also offers a map showing both the current location and the destination.

The 3D sign language avatar kiosk supports not only hospital use guidance but also ticket issuance. It provides in sign language the key information needed to use hospital services, including outpatient care, admission and discharge procedures, issuance of various certificates, and health check-up guidance. It is designed with an intuitive screen layout so that older adults and users unfamiliar with digital devices can easily use it.

For services such as explaining symptoms, guiding examinations, understanding treatment processes, and handling payments and administrative procedures, real-time communication is important and cannot be replaced by simple guidance. At this point, the sign language interpretation service based on three-way video calls through “Hand Sign TokTok” plays a core role.

Users with hearing impairments can call an interpreter through the app whenever needed during a hospital visit, and consultations and administrative procedures can proceed with staff, sign language interpreter, and user connected simultaneously. This enables them to understand the medical staff’s explanations more accurately and to fully convey their own condition.

Previously, there was a burden of having to reserve or accompany a sign language interpreter in advance when visiting a hospital, but the new service significantly enhances accessibility and usability by enabling instant connection at the moment of need. Operated from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays, the service is being evaluated as a practical alternative that can substantially reduce communication gaps in the medical service use process for people with hearing impairments.

A KLcube representative explained, “The core of this project is that it has established an integrated medical accessibility environment, connecting basic guidance via AI sign language avatars with sign language interpretation based on three-way calls, from information delivery through to actual consultations.” The representative added, “KLcube will continue to focus on creating an environment in which all users, including people with hearing impairments, can access services without discrimination through AI sign language technology,” and said, “The company plans to expand its services beyond the medical sector into various areas of daily life such as public services, finance, and transportation.”

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