Insight on Electronic Travel Aids for Visually Impaired People: A Review on the Electromagnetic Technology

Cardillo, Emanuele; Caddemi, Alina

doi:10.3390/electronics8111281

Cited by 42 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…The first is electronic travel aids (ETAs), which sense a nearfield environment for mobility assistance. The second is orientation and navigation systems (ONS), which assist in reaching far field (Loomis et al 2007 ; Cardillo and Caddemi, 2019 ). ETAs aim to improve obstacle avoidance by in a way extending the length of the white cane.…”

Section: Research Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

Teleguidance-based remote navigation assistance for visually impaired and blind people—usability and user experience

Chaudary

Pohjolainen

Aziz³

et al. 2021

Virtual Reality

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This paper reports the development of a specialized teleguidance-based navigation assistance system for the blind and the visually impaired. We present findings from a usability and user experience study conducted with 11 blind and visually impaired participants and a sighted caretaker. Participants sent live video feed of their field of view to the remote caretaker’s terminal from a smartphone camera attached to their chest. The caretaker used this video feed to guide them through indoor and outdoor navigation scenarios using a combination of haptic and voice-based communication. Haptic feedback was provided through vibrating actuators installed in the grip of a Smart Cane. Two haptic methods for directional guidance were tested: (1) two vibrating actuators to guide left and right movement and (2) a single vibrating actuator with differentiating vibration patterns for the same purpose. Users feedback was collected using a meCUE 2.0 standardized questionnaire, interviews, and group discussions. Participants’ perceptions toward the proposed navigation assistance system were positive. Blind participants preferred vibrational guidance with two actuators, while partially blind participants preferred the single actuator method. Familiarity with cane use and age were important factors in the choice of haptic methods by both blind and partially blind users. It was found that smartphone camera provided sufficient field of view for remote assistance; position and angle are nonetheless important considerations. Ultimately, more research is needed to confirm our preliminary findings. We also present an expanded evaluation model developed to carry out further research on assistive systems.

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Section: Research Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

Teleguidance-based remote navigation assistance for visually impaired and blind people—usability and user experience

Chaudary

Pohjolainen

Aziz³

et al. 2021

Virtual Reality

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“…There are many integral functions which makes up an ETA. Human-machine interface, machinehuman interface, object detection, object recognition, mapping, perception and control of locomotion are some of it just to name a few [3]. However, amongst all functionality, navigation remains as one of the most necessary and fundamental requirement of an ETA system for visual impairment [12].…”

Section: Navigationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Mobility aids for visually impaired people known as electronic travel aids (ETAs) are equipped with measurement systems to detect objects and avoid collision [2]. Some of the objectives and challenges of ETA includes detection of obstacle, information on the travel surface, location of landmarks, identification information, selffamiliarization and mapping of the surrounding [3]. Through solid ETA construction, the visually impaired people can be more self-independent, less likely to be involved in accidents, improve their reachability and finally improve the living lifestyle.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Methodologies and evaluation of electronic travel aids for the visually impaired people: a review

et al. 2021

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Technological advancements have widely contributed to navigation aids. However, their large-scale adaptation for navigation solutions for visually impaired people haven’t been realized yet. Less participation of the visually impaired subject produces a designer-oriented navigation system which overshadows consumer necessity. The outcome results in trust and safety issues, hindering the navigation aids from really contribute to the safety of the targeted end user. This study categorizes electronic travel aids (ETAs) based on experimental evaluations, highlights the designer-centred development of navigation aids with insufficient participation of the visual impaired community. First the research breaks down the methodologies to achieve navigation, followed by categorization of the test and experimentation done to evaluate the systems and ranks it by maturity order. From 70 selected research articles, 51.4% accounts for simulation evaluation, 24.3% involve blindfolded-sighted humans, 22.9% involve visually impaired people and only 1.4% makes it into production and commercialization. Our systematic review offers a bird’s eye view on ETA development and evaluation and contributes to construction of navigational aids which really impact the target group of visually impaired people.

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“…ETA devices are equipped with sensors (ultrasonic, infrared, or electromagnetic), radars, or cameras to capture information about the environment and convey encoded signals to blind users by tactile (vibration) or auditory stimulation [2,[16][17][18]. While ETAs fall within the general category of SSDs, they mostly provide simple feedback that is strictly relevant for navigation, such as the presence of obstacles in the path of travel, and their distance and location.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Blindness and the Reliability of Downwards Sensors to Avoid Obstacles: A Study with the EyeCane

Bleau

Paré

Djerourou

et al. 2021

Sensors

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Vision loss has dramatic repercussions on the quality of life of affected people, particularly with respect to their orientation and mobility. Many devices are available to help blind people to navigate in their environment. The EyeCane is a recently developed electronic travel aid (ETA) that is inexpensive and easy to use, allowing for the detection of obstacles lying ahead within a 2 m range. The goal of this study was to investigate the potential of the EyeCane as a primary aid for spatial navigation. Three groups of participants were recruited: early blind, late blind, and sighted. They were first trained with the EyeCane and then tested in a life-size obstacle course with four obstacles types: cube, door, post, and step. Subjects were requested to cross the corridor while detecting, identifying, and avoiding the obstacles. Each participant had to perform 12 runs with 12 different obstacles configurations. All participants were able to learn quickly to use the EyeCane and successfully complete all trials. Amongst the various obstacles, the step appeared to prove the hardest to detect and resulted in more collisions. Although the EyeCane was effective for detecting obstacles lying ahead, its downward sensor did not reliably detect those on the ground, rendering downward obstacles more hazardous for navigation.

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Insight on Electronic Travel Aids for Visually Impaired People: A Review on the Electromagnetic Technology

Cited by 42 publications

References 35 publications

Teleguidance-based remote navigation assistance for visually impaired and blind people—usability and user experience

Teleguidance-based remote navigation assistance for visually impaired and blind people—usability and user experience

Methodologies and evaluation of electronic travel aids for the visually impaired people: a review

Blindness and the Reliability of Downwards Sensors to Avoid Obstacles: A Study with the EyeCane

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