scholarly journals FUNCTIONAL ASSESSMENT OF A CAMERA PHONE-BASED WAYFINDING SYSTEM OPERATED BY BLIND AND VISUALLY IMPAIRED USERS

2009 ◽  
Vol 18 (03) ◽  
pp. 379-397 ◽  
Author(s):  
JAMES COUGHLAN ◽  
ROBERTO MANDUCHI
Keyword(s):  
Visually Impaired ◽  
Motion Blur ◽  
Camera Phone ◽  
Cluttered Environments ◽  
Blind And Visually Impaired ◽  
Outdoor Environments ◽  
Indoor And Outdoor Environments ◽  
Visually Impaired Persons ◽  
Color Marker ◽  
Indoor And Outdoor

We describe a wayfinding system for blind and visually impaired persons that uses a camera phone to determine the user's location with respect to color markers, posted at locations of interest (such as offices), which are automatically detected by the phone. The color marker signs are specially designed to be detected in real time in cluttered environments using computer vision software running on the phone; a novel segmentation algorithm quickly locates the borders of the color marker in each image, which allows the system to calculate how far the marker is from the phone. We present a model of how the user's scanning strategy (i.e. how he/she pans the phone left and right to find color markers) affects the system's ability to detect color markers given the limitations imposed by motion blur, which is always a possibility whenever a camera is in motion. Finally, we describe experiments with our system tested by blind and visually impaired volunteers, demonstrating their ability to reliably use the system to find locations designated by color markers in a variety of indoor and outdoor environments, and elucidating which search strategies were most effective for users.

scholarly journals VES: A Mixed-Reality System to Assist Multisensory Spatial Perception and Cognition for Blind and Visually Impaired People

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 523
Author(s):  
Santiago Real ◽  
Alvaro Araujo
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Data ◽  
Visually Impaired ◽  
Mixed Reality ◽  
Spatial Perception ◽  
Human Perception ◽  
Sensory Substitution ◽  
Blind And Visually Impaired ◽  
Outdoor Environments ◽  
Acoustic Space ◽  
Indoor And Outdoor Environments

In this paper, the Virtually Enhanced Senses (VES) System is described. It is an ARCore-based, mixed-reality system meant to assist blind and visually impaired people’s navigation. VES operates in indoor and outdoor environments without any previous in-situ installation. It provides users with specific, runtime-configurable stimuli according to their pose, i.e., position and orientation, and the information of the environment recorded in a virtual replica. It implements three output data modalities: Wall-tracking assistance, acoustic compass, and a novel sensory substitution algorithm, Geometry-based Virtual Acoustic Space (GbVAS). The multimodal output of this algorithm takes advantage of natural human perception encoding of spatial data. Preliminary experiments of GbVAS have been conducted with sixteen subjects in three different scenarios, demonstrating basic orientation and mobility skills after six minutes training.

scholarly journals Health Effects and Exposure Assessment to Bioaerosols in Indoor and Outdoor Environments

Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 359
Author(s):  
Ewa Brągoszewska
Keyword(s):  
Exposure Assessment ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Outdoor Environments ◽  
Indoor And Outdoor Environments ◽  
Indoor And Outdoor

The Atmosphere Special Issue entitled “Health Effects and Exposure Assessment to Bioaerosols in Indoor and Outdoor Environments” comprises five original papers [...]

scholarly journals Conveying facial expressions to blind and visually impaired persons through a wearable vibrotactile device

PLoS ONE ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. e0194737 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hendrik P. Buimer ◽  
Marian Bittner ◽  
Tjerk Kostelijk ◽  
Thea M. van der Geest ◽  
Abdellatif Nemri ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Facial Expressions ◽  
Visually Impaired ◽  
Blind And Visually Impaired ◽  
Visually Impaired Persons

Development of Efficiency in Visual Functioning: Rationale for a Comprehensive Program

1979 ◽  
Vol 73 (4) ◽  
pp. 121-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natalie C. Barraga ◽  
Marcia E. Collins
Keyword(s):  
Visual System ◽  
Visual Functioning ◽  
Comprehensive Program ◽  
Outdoor Environments ◽  
Visual Tasks ◽  
Indoor And Outdoor Environments ◽  
Indoor And Outdoor

The rationale for a comprehensive program in visual functioning is based upon an assumed interaction between: (a) functions performed by the visual system, (b) developmental visual tasks organized in keeping with perceptual/cognitive milestones, and (c) a variety of indoor and outdoor environments.

Approaches to Increasing Assertive Behavior and Communication Skills in Blind and Visually Impaired Persons

1986 ◽  
Vol 80 (6) ◽  
pp. 794-798
Author(s):  
Rona L. Harrell ◽  
Felice A. Strauss
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Learned Helplessness ◽  
Visually Impaired ◽  
Blind And Visually Impaired ◽  
Assertive Behavior ◽  
Structured Intervention ◽  
Impaired Person ◽  
Assertion Training ◽  
Partially Sighted ◽  
Visually Impaired Persons

Many visually impaired individuals are found to be too passive or too aggressive in their social interactions. Lack of assertive behavior is related to the concept of learned helplessness. Components of assertive behavior are described with suggestions for enabling the visually impaired person to develop these skills. The underlying concepts of assertion training are explained along with specific techniques to be utilized in the school or rehabilitative setting. With a structured intervention resulting in improved assertiveness skills, blind or partially sighted individuals can increase their effectiveness in communicating with others and can feel more in control of their lives.

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