"The body is confined to the square inch of a wheelchair, but the soul is free to grow upward. ”
He is a child with cerebral palsy, but he became the first disabled student at Soochow University to obtain a doctorate, he has been in a wheelchair since he was a child, but he has traveled to more than 20 countries, and he can only use three fingers, but he has developed a barrier-free map to facilitate the travel of more disabled people......
At the 2024 Jiangsu "Most Beautiful People" advanced deeds press conference, Li Linqing, founder of Abertek (Suzhou) Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd., was awarded the title of "The Most Beautiful Youth" in Jiangsu by the Propaganda Department of the Jiangsu Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Jiangsu Provincial Committee of the Communist Youth League. ”
He was born with cerebral palsy and struggled to study for 20 years
Shouldering responsibility and gratitude, before having such a mentality, Li Linqing also experienced a period of what he called a dark time.
When he was 1 year old, Li Linqing was diagnosed with cerebral palsy, and after being treated in many hospitals across the country, his condition did not improve much, not only could he not stand and walk, but only 3 fingers of his hands could move relatively normally, fortunately, Li Linqing's intelligence was not affected.
Due to his physical disability, Li Linqing's road to study was very bumpy, and many schools turned him away as a child. Li Linqing's mother said that what is easy for ordinary people to do, it takes a lot of effort for him. However, Li Linqing has never given up learning, "My hands are not as flexible as normal people, so I practice writing over and over again."
So, my mother, who had a bachelor's degree, quit her job as an engineer and accompanied Li Linqing on her way to study rain or shine. Mom hugged her to school, and her classmates carried her to the toilet. Relying on strong perseverance, Li Linqing has been studying hard and firmly believes that knowledge changes destiny.
"If fate strikes you, the best way is to fight back against it, to counterattack it. With such a motto, Li Linqing has made unimaginable efforts to achieve a turnaround against the wind.
On June 7, 2006, Li Linqing took the college entrance examination, and he was admitted to Soochow University with a score of more than 40 points higher than the first line of Jiangsu Province. Li Linqing said: "Thanks to the people who have helped me all the way, I am very impressed until now, the college entrance examination room was on the fourth floor, the school did not have an elevator, and it was the physical education teacher who carried me into the examination room." ”
After 20 years of hard study, Li Linqing overcame many difficulties with unremitting efforts to become a bachelor's and master's degree, and finally was admitted to Soochow University with excellent results in the direction of artificial intelligence, and also became the first disabled student of Soochow University to obtain a doctorate.
Traveling to several countries, it was decided to develop an accessible map
Li Linqing, who has excellent academic performance, also has a heart that wants to go out and see the world. Li Linqing, 32 years old this year, has been to more than 20 countries in the world. "In the past few years, I have been going abroad almost every year. It was also in the process of traveling around the world that Li Linqing found that many countries have relatively complete barrier-free facilities, and it is very convenient for people with disabilities to travel.
Although his life is not confined to a wheelchair, as a disabled person, Li Linqing knows first-hand how difficult it is to go out, he said, many disabled people are afraid to go out because they don't know whether it is convenient to arrive at the destination. The cost of time and the confusion of the unknown make people with disabilities particularly insecure.
"I want to clear the obstacles, I want to change all this!" Li Linqing silently resolved in his heart, hoping to help more disabled people like him to be able to get out of every square inch.
In order to reduce the cost of accessibility information for people with disabilities in China, Li Linqing traveled to first- and second-tier cities in China to conduct research and further optimize the barrier-free travel experience. In 2018, before graduating, he gave up the high-paying and stable employment opportunities provided by the school, and expressed the idea of starting his own business to the relevant government departments and received strong support. In March 2019, he founded Aubertec (Suzhou) Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd. and led the team to officially develop barrier-free maps for people with disabilities.
Starting from Suzhou, let the disabled get out of every square inch
In the development of accessible maps, in addition to the most common system components, the most important thing to support a navigation is to collect data. In order to collect data, Li Linqing and his colleagues traveled to almost every corner of Suzhou, and at the same time, through the matchmaking of Suzhou Disabled Persons' Federation, human resources and social security, science and technology and other departments, many volunteers took the initiative to come to help collect the extensive and large amount of data required for the launch of barrier-free maps.
After more than a year of preparation, in December 2020, the accessible map was finally available. This barrier-free map can not only locate and broadcast routes in real time, but also mark in detail the barrier-free facilities information in public places, including ramps, elevators, toilets, subway elevator exits, etc., providing great convenience for the disabled and the elderly.
It is worth mentioning that the most distinctive gardens in Suzhou can also be seen in the barrier-free map. Li Linqing told reporters that in fact, Suzhou Gardens has a barrier-free viewing route specially designed for the disabled, but many disabled people do not understand, and often do not know where to go after walking to an intersection without finding a prompt. If you use the barrier-free map designed by Li Linqing, it can not only carry out real-time positioning and broadcasting, but also timely remind when there is a steep slope and other situations to avoid accidents.
Ru Xiang is a wheelchair user and a volunteer for accessibility mapping. He told reporters, "The hand-to-hand shooting function in the barrier-free map is very good, it allows users to take pictures of obstacles on the road at any time, and report these problems to the relevant departments to promote the timely treatment and improvement of obstacles." ”
At present, barrier-free maps have been widely recognized and praised by all walks of life. Many people with disabilities say the accessible map makes it easier and safer for them to get around. As of December 2023, the barrier-free map has covered 13 districts and cities and 85 counties, districts and cities in Jiangsu Province, serving a total of 45.23 million people and directly benefiting more than 5.7 million people.
The physical defects not only did not imprison the light of Li Linqing's life, but also made him work hard to grow wings and help more "suffering people" get out of every square inch! Now that Li Linqing has succeeded in his career, his eyes have become brighter, his laughter has become more cheerful, and his voice has become louder. He said, "In the future, he will continue to use artificial intelligence technology to help more people with disabilities bravely step out of their homes and better integrate into society."