Interactive Travel Aid for the Visually Impaired: from Depth Maps to Sonic Patterns and Verbal Messages

Development of Portable Color Discrimination for the Visually Impaired and Color Blindness

Journal of Robotics and Mechatronics ◽

10.20965/jrm.2004.p0535 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 16 (5) ◽

pp. 535-544 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Mitsuyoshi Maekawa ◽

◽

Shinya Hashizume ◽

Yasunori Touma ◽

Yukiko Imai ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Visually Impaired ◽

Color Discrimination ◽

Color Pattern ◽

Color Blindness ◽

Musical Tone ◽

Color Name ◽

Colorimetric Data ◽

Environmental Robustness ◽

Verbal Messages ◽

Impaired Person

The inability to discriminate color is an ongoing problem for the visually impaired and those with color blindness. We propose a portable color discrimination unit that communicates color information to users in verbal messages and sound. The unit states what color the target is and, by scanning its surface, transmits a continuous musical tone corresponding to color variations in the scanned area. The targetive is to make color patterns and the target layout recognizable, requiring 1) colorimetric stability, 2) translation of colorimetric information into an appropriate color name, and 3) setting of a relationship between color and sound. We propose using automated calibration and developed a colorimetric unit with high environmental robustness. Colorimetric data consists of RGB data, which does not lend itself readily to color discrimination, so we developed a way to convert RGB data to 220 color names. To develop easy-to-remember color-sound correspondence, we propose using the Shepard Tone Method, in which Shepard tones are mapped onto color hues. These are combined so users scan a target and hear a continuous sound and, if necessary, a color name, to recognize the target’s overall color pattern, somewhat akin to how a visually impaired person recognizes a sculpture by touching its surface.

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Articulatory Intervention for the Visually Impaired

Language Speech and Hearing Services in Schools ◽

10.1044/0161-1461.1003.139 ◽

1979 ◽

Vol 10 (3) ◽

pp. 139-144

Author(s):

Cheri L. Florance ◽

Judith O’Keefe

Keyword(s):

High School ◽

High School Students ◽

Behavior Change ◽

Visually Impaired ◽

School Students ◽

Handicapped Children ◽

Paired Stimuli ◽

Visually Handicapped ◽

Parent Program

A modification of the Paired-Stimuli Parent Program (Florance, 1977) was adapted for the treatment of articulatory errors of visually handicapped children. Blind high school students served as clinical aides. A discussion of treatment methodology, and the results of administrating the program to 32 children, including a two-year follow-up evaluation to measure permanence of behavior change, is presented.

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