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Designing a haptic wearable for people with visual impairment to aid navigation

Hopfenspirger, A.M. (2021) Designing a haptic wearable for people with visual impairment to aid navigation.

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Abstract:Within this paper, the development of a haptic wearable device, utilizing vibration patterns is documented. The device was developed for people with visual impairment to aid them in their navigation efforts. The project aims to help users to gain an understanding of their larger surroundings, to do informed and safe decisions, and to enable them to navigate within new environments, looking for important objects. Users were considered, related design criteria were collected and matched with technical elements to create a device capable of telling the environment in front of the user to the user in sufficient detail. The device did not aim to replace common aids, such as the cane. It consists out of a vest, which is capable telling the user what is in front of him through haptic symbols, and a gauntlet that utilizes tactons to symbolise certain types of objects if needed to provide more detailed information. In addition, a universal haptic language was developed, which could potentially be used in other projects. The system was tested with visually able people in several tests to great success. The result is a promising proof of concept, which offers already deeper insights into the development of such a device.
Item Type:Essay (Bachelor)
Faculty:EEMCS: Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science
Subject:53 electrotechnology
Programme:Creative Technology BSc (50447)
Link to this item:https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/88409
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