Virtual smart white cane for obstacle detection

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (www.cdc.gov/), blindness is “a severe vision impairment, not correctable by standard glasses, contact lenses, medicine, or surgery” [1]. It is estimated that 285 million people worldwide are blind or severely visually impaired. About 90% of the world`s visually impaired live in low-income regions of the world [1]. Although the traditional white cane is useful, it is severly limited in its ability to detect obstacles. Our low-cost effective-design virtual smart cane consists of a light-weight vest with ultrasonic sensors, facing different directions, sewn on it for object detection. Arduino Nano controllers were programmed to read the input from the ultrasonic sensors. The Arduino is programmed to then convert and signal into a smart phone application that sends out an audio signal via Bluetooth connection. This was done by making an Android application that reads the Bluetooth signal. Solar cells were used to charge the batteries that power the virtual smart cane. In situations of insufficient sunlight, the battery can be manually charged. All the above components are incorporated into the vest. Waterproofing was also implemented on the vest to allow the user to navigate in the rain with a working system. It has proven to be low cost, with an effective and user-friendly detection unit. It also prevents strain on the wrist, caused by constant moving a cane.

Acknowledgements: This work was supported by a grant from the Faculty Research and Creative Activities Award (FRACAA), Western Michigan University.

References:

[1] https://www.cdc.gov/healthcommunication/ToolsTemplates/EntertainmentEd/Tips/Blindness.htm