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The “EyeCane”, a new electronic travel aid for the blind: Technology, behavior & swift learning

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Maidenbaum, Shachar | Hanassy, Shlomi | Abboud, Sami | Buchs, Galit | Chebat, Daniel-Robert; | Levy-Tzedek, Shelly; | Amedi, Amir; ;

Affiliations: Department of Medical Neurobiology, Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada, Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel | The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Research, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel | Department of Cognitive Science, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel

Note: [] These authors contributed equally.

Note: [] These authors contributed equally.

Note: [] Corresponding author: Amir Amedi, Ph.D., Dept. of Medical Neurobiology – The Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada, Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91220, Israel. Tel.: +972 2 675 7259; Fax: +972 2 675 8602; E-mail: [email protected]; http://brain.huji.ac.il/

Keywords: Blind, mobility, rehabilitation, sensory substitution, SSD, active sensing

DOI: 10.3233/RNN-130351

Journal: Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience, vol. 32, no. 6, pp. 813-824, 2014

Published: 2014
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Abstract

Purpose: Independent mobility is one of the most pressing problems facing people who are blind. We present the EyeCane, a new mobility aid aimed at increasing perception of environment beyond what is provided by the traditional White Cane for tasks such as distance estimation, navigation and obstacle detection. Methods: The “EyeCane” enhances the traditional White Cane by using tactile and auditory output to increase detectable distance and angles. It circumvents the technical pitfalls of other devices, such as weight, short battery life, complex interface schemes, and slow learning curve. It implements multiple beams to enables detection of obstacles at different heights, and narrow beams to provide active sensing that can potentially increase the user's spatial perception of the environment. Participants were tasked with using the EyeCane for several basic tasks with minimal training. Results: Blind and blindfolded-sighted participants were able to use the EyeCane successfully for distance estimation, simple navigation and simple obstacle detection after only several minutes of training. Conclusions: These results demonstrate the EyeCane's potential for mobility rehabilitation. The short training time is especially important since available mobility training resources are limited, not always available, and can be quite expensive and/or entail long waiting periods.

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