A group of researchers in China has developed an innovative system for Help blind people to move more autonomy and security. It is a portable visual assistant created by a joint team of the Jiao Tong University in Shanghai and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology that combines several advanced technologies.
How does it work?
The system is like A virtual reality adapted to real lifewhich combines several elements to guide the user. Among them, we find some 3D camera glasses that detect obstacles in the environment and a Artificial skin (A-Skin), placed on the wrist or fingers, which vibrates when there are obstacles nearby, according to their necessary address or action.
It also has a Bone speakerwhich transmits sounds directly to the skull, without blocking the ears, in addition to the ability to perform a Virtual reality trainingwhich allows the system to learn safe routes and recognize even 82 types of objectseven in variable conditions, as reported from the magazine Nature.
Instead of using spoken messages, The system emits enveloping but subtle soundsthat have a clear meaning and do not saturate the person. In this way, it is not annoying or confusing and Allows you to move more naturally. During a test in an environment with obstacles, the 100% of blind or low vision people who used this system achievement Turn it successfully.
Promising results
Compared to those who used only the cane, Collisions were reduced by 67%he navigation time dropped 25% and the march speed remained the same than with traditional methods.
Although the results are promising, the system is not yet perfect. On a usability scale (SUS), it obtained a score of 79.6 out of 100. It is a high note, although there is still room to improve.
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