Peter Bartus Leonard Meijer
Peter Meijer is a pioneer in visual sensory substitution through audio representation, targeted primarily for the blind. He is the inventor and developer of The vOICe (also currently providing direct user support and acting as media contact).[1] He is also the inventor of the original "Image-audio transformation system" patent of 1990 [2] and numerous related patents and academic publications since.[1]
His work has received extensive scientific and media attention.[3][4] In 2002, Dr. Meijer presented alongside Dr. Paul Bach-y-Rita (pioneer of neuroplasticity and sensory substitution) at the plenary opening session on "Sensory Substitution I: Visual Consciousness in Blind Subjects?" of the Tucson 2002 conference "Toward a Science of Consciousness" [5]
Life and career
Peter Meijer, was born on June 5, 1961 in the small town of Sliedrecht, The Netherlands. Both his parents being artistic and creative, his father, Piet Meijer, was a pianist, conductor and music teacher, and his mother, Adrie Lagewaard, a primary school teacher, with a passion for drawing, painting and embroidery.[6] He attended Delft University of Technology from 1979 to 1985 where he earned his B.Sc and M.Sc both in Physics. In August 1985, Peter moved to his present location of Eindhoven to work at Philips Research Laboratories, where he worked until 2006. In 1996 he completed a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Eindhoven University of Technology. From 2006 to 2010 he worked on computer vision R&D at NXP Semiconductors and in October 2011 he joined Akeso Medical Imaging BV, which in April 2013 changed its name to Hemics BV. In 2011 he also founded the company Metamodal BV. Throughout his academic and professional career, (from 1985 to the present), he has continued to work on his project The vOICe which he actively develops and provides support for.[1]