Abstract
In this paper, we propose a new haptic-assisted virtual cane system operated by a simple finger pointing gesture. The system is developed by two stages: development of visual information delivery assistant (VIDA) with a stereo camera and adding a tactile feedback interface with dual actuators for guidance and distance feedbacks. In the first stage, user's pointing finger is automatically detected using color and disparity data from stereo images and then a 3D pointing direction of the finger is estimated with its geometric and textural features. Finally, any object within the estimated pointing trajectory in 3D space is detected and the distance is then estimated in real time. For the second stage, identifiable tactile signals are designed through a series of identification experiments, and an identifiable tactile feedback interface is developed and integrated into the VIDA system. Our approach differs in that navigation guidance is provided by a simple finger pointing gesture and tactile distance feedbacks are perfectly identifiable to the blind.
Highlights
The role of the white cane, a mechanical device, is an extended-hand like guidance for the better mobility that guarantees safe and comfortable movements
We focus on presenting a robust and advanced distance estimation system with a stereo camera that is operated by a simple finger pointing gesture
We developed a complete solution of a virtual cane system by combining finger pointing gesture and tactile feedback
Summary
The role of the white cane, a mechanical device, is an extended-hand like guidance for the better mobility that guarantees safe and comfortable movements. Sensors play a crucial role in sensing obstacles and these days high-tech sensors like ultrasound and lidar have been used as new approaches [1,2,3] Those sensors have tradeoffs in terms of accuracy, cost and portableness, and so camera sensors have been considered as the best option due to the unique benefits such as low cost, non-contact object detection, precise shape reconstruction, and computational efficiency. These benefits have been proved by researchers [4,5] who demonstrated that utilizing vision sensors benefit the blind to explore visual environments efficiently under dynamic scenes in various applications. This simple approach enables the quick detection of a moving hand in a static environment
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