6533b7d3fe1ef96bd1260ba0
RESEARCH PRODUCT
Enabling independent navigation for visually impaired people through a wearable vision-based feedback system
Daniela RusSantani TengRobert K. KatzschmannHsueh-cheng WangBrandon ArakiLaura Giarresubject
EngineeringSituation awarenessbusiness.industry05 social sciencesWearable computer02 engineering and technologyPlan (drawing)Motion (physics)Obstacle0202 electrical engineering electronic engineering information engineeringTrajectory020201 artificial intelligence & image processing0501 psychology and cognitive sciencesComputer visionArtificial intelligenceMotion planningbusiness050107 human factorsHaptic technologydescription
This work introduces a wearable system to provide situational awareness for blind and visually impaired people. The system includes a camera, an embedded computer and a haptic device to provide feedback when an obstacle is detected. The system uses techniques from computer vision and motion planning to (1) identify walkable space; (2) plan step-by-step a safe motion trajectory in the space, and (3) recognize and locate certain types of objects, for example the location of an empty chair. These descriptions are communicated to the person wearing the device through vibrations. We present results from user studies with low- and high-level tasks, including walking through a maze without collisions, locating a chair, and walking through a crowded environment while avoiding people.
| year | journal | country | edition | language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-05-01 | 2017 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA) |