Feature Detection Applied to Context-Aware Blind Guidance Support

Abstract

Abstract. Human beings have developed a number of evolutionary mechanisms that allows the distinction between different objects and the triggering of events based on their perception of reality. Visual impairment has a significant impact on individuals' quality of life, including their ability to work and to develop personal relationships as they often feel cut off people and things around them, due to their impairment. The need for assistive technologies has long been a constant in the daily lives of people with visual impairments, and will remain a constant in future years. Cognitive mapping is of extreme importance for individuals in terms of creating a conceptual model of the surrounding space and objects around them, thereby supporting their interaction with the physical environment. This work describes the use of computer vision techniques, namely feature detectors and descriptors, to detect objects in the scene and help contextualize the user within the surrounding space, enhancing their mobility, navigation and cognitive mapping of a new environment.