Philippine E-Journals

Integrated Assistive Tools for the Blind with Obstacle Collision Detection, GPS Tracker and Video Recording

Venice Deanne Q. Alcasid | Marigold Myka L. Lawas | John Michael T. Manguera

 

Abstract:

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 314 million people are visually impaired. WHO predicts that the number of blind people around the world could reach up to 76 million in 2020. Blind people have many struggles in their everyday lives; mobility is one of these. It is really hard for these people to navigate around, especially in unfamiliar places. Most commonly, the blind people use assistive tools like White Canes and trained dogs. Training is needed for the blind to be able to properly move around using these tools. But with the rapid growth of technologies, there are tons of assistive tools now available in the market. The proponents decided to integrate and further develop the available assistive technologies for the blind to enable them to walk around independently. This project proposed a microcontroller-based system. For the cane, there are three kinds of sensors used in this system: the ultrasonic sensors, LIDAR and water sensor. The ultrasonic sensors will be used as an obstacle detector. It would detect if there is an obstruction within a certain range and it would generate a voice signal indicating that there’s an obstruction and what the user will do to avoid the obstructed path. The LIDAR allows the system to inform the blind via a voice message warning if there are oncoming vehicles. The water sensor functions as a short-circuiting system that will detect the presence of water. It will also generate a voice warning message that would inform the user if there is a puddle along the way. The cane also has a time notification feature which enables the user to be aware of the time of the day. The user would be notified every hour. The cane also has a camera for safety and security purposes. The hat contains an ultrasonic sensor for head level obstructions. It also has a camera so that it can capture the surroundings that cannot be captured by the camera on the cane. The watch has two buttons. One of the buttons is for the GPS and GSM module that will enable the user to send his/her location to his family in case of emergencies or if the user is lost. There will be four (4) numbers saved in the system. The other button is for the RF- based remote that will serve as the cane locator if ever the user misplaces the cane.