Iterative Design of Sonification Techniques to Support People with Visual Impairments in Obstacle Avoidance

Obstacle avoidance is a major challenge during independent mobility for blind or visually impaired (BVI) people. Typically, BVI people can only perceive obstacles at a short distance (about 1 m, in case they are using the white cane), and some obstacles are hard to detect (e.g . , those elevated from the ground), or should not be hit by the white cane (e.g . , a standing person). A solution to these problems can be found in recent computer-vision techniques that can run on mobile and wearable devices to detect obstacles at a distance. However, in addition to detecting obstacles, it is also necessary to convey information about them in real time. This contribution presents WatchOut , a sonification technique for conveying real-time information about the main properties of an obstacle to a BVI person, who can then use this additional feedback to safely navigate in the environment. WatchOut was designed with a user-centered approach, involving four iterations of online listening tests with BVI participants in order to define, improve and evaluate the sonification technique, eventually obtaining an almost perfect recognition accuracy. WatchOut was also implemented and tested as a module of a mobile app that detects obstacles using state-of-the-art computer vision technology. Results show that the system is considered usable and can guide the users to avoid more than 85% of the obstacles.

Tom Pouce III, an Electronic White Cane for Blind People: Ability to Detect Obstacles and Mobility Performances

We present a protocol for evaluating the efficiency of an electronic white cane for improving the mobility of blind people. The electronic cane used during the test is the Tom Pouce III, made of LIDAR sensors (light detection and ranging) with tactile feedback. The protocol comprises two parts. The first part, the “detection test”, evaluates the efficiency of the sensors in the Tom Pouce III for detecting the obstacles found in everyday life (thin and large poles, apertures) under different environmental conditions (darkness, sun light, rain). The second part of the test, the “mobility test”, compares the ability of blind participants to cross a 25 m path by avoiding obstacles with the simple white cane and the electronic cane. The 12 blind participants had between 2 and 20 years of experience of everyday usage of Tom Pouce devices. The results show a significant improvement in the capacity to avoid obstacles with the electronic cane relative to the simple white cane, and there was no speed difference. There was no correlation between the results and the years of experience of the users.

Sensory Substitution for the Visually Impaired: A Study on the Usability of the Sound of Vision System in Outdoor Environments

For most visually impaired people, simple tasks such as understanding the environment or moving safely around it represent huge challenges. The Sound of Vision system was designed as a sensory substitution device, based on computer vision techniques, that encodes any environment in a naturalistic representation through audio and haptic feedback. The present paper presents a study on the usability of this system for visually impaired people in relevant environments. The aim of the study is to assess how well the system is able to help the perception and mobility of the visually impaired participants in real life environments and circumstances. The testing scenarios were devised to allow the assessment of the added value of the Sound of Vision system compared to traditional assistive instruments, such as the white cane. Various data were collected during the tests to allow for a better evaluation of the performance: system configuration, completion times, electro-dermal activity, video footage, user feedback. With minimal training, the system could be successfully used in outdoor environments to perform various perception and mobility tasks. The benefit of the Sound of Vision device compared to the white cane was confirmed by the participants and by the evaluation results to consist in: providing early feedback about static and dynamic objects, providing feedback about elevated objects, walls, negative obstacles (e.g., holes in the ground) and signs.

Smart Blind Stick Design and Implementation

Technologies are rapidly evolving, allowing people to live healthier and simpler lives. Sightless people are unable to carry out their everyday activities, such as walking down the street, visiting friends or relatives, or doing some other mundane tasks. As a result, the smart stick is a stick that can assist a person in walking safely without fear of colliding with another person or solid objects is proposed as a solution to this major issue. It is a development of the traditional blind stick as it acts as a companion for the blind when walking by sending audio alerts to the blind via a headphone connected to the phone with obstacles (water/walls/stairs / muddy ground) and also enables him to make a phone call to ask for help. EasyEda software was used for designing and simulating electrical circuits, was used to model the electric circuit. This system functions similarly to a white cane in that it assists blind people in scanning their surroundings for obstacles or orientation marks. This system will be mounted on a white cane with an ultrasonic sensor, and a water sensor to detect changes in the environment. Ultrasonic sensors detect obstacles in front of it using ultrasonic wave reflection, water detection sensors detect whether there is a puddle.

Development of a White-Cane-Extension to Detect Automatic Doors

The majority visually impaired persons are using a white cane to move within their environment. They avoid to collision the obstacles by detecting objects when swinging white cane touches them. An automatic door is opened when it detects the person comes to it by the sensor, for example, infrared sensor. This kind of automatic doors are very useful because we need not touch the doors in order to open them. However, for majority visually impaired persons, it is difficult to detected automatic doors because they detect the object by touching. In this paper, we propose the detection method which tells the existence of automatic doors to the visually impaired person. The device is consisted of an infrared sensor and a vibration motor. The infrared sensor is put on the tip of the white cane and the vibration motor is put on close to the hand. And when it detects the infrared signal, the vibration motor runs. Then the visually impaired persons can through the automatic door in safety without any cares

An inconspicuous, integrated electronic travel aid for visual impairment

With a globally aging population, visual impairment is an increasingly pressing problem for our society. This form of disability drastically reduces the quality of life and constitutes a large cost to the health care system. Mobility of the visually impaired is one of the most critical aspects affected by this disability, and yet it relies on low-tech solutions, such as the white cane and guide dogs. However, many avoid solutions entirely. In part, reluctance to use these solutions may be explained by their obtrusiveness, which is also a strong deterrent for the adoption of many new devices. In this paper, we leverage new advancements in artificial intelligence, sensor systems, and soft electroactive materials toward an electronic travel aid with an obstacle detection and avoidance system for the visually impaired. The travel aid incorporates a stereoscopic camera platform, enabling computer vision, and a wearable haptic device that can stimulate discrete locations on the user's abdomen to signal the presence of surrounding obstacles. The proposed technology could be integrated into commercial backpacks and support belts, thereby guaranteeing a discreet and unobtrusive solution.