Visually impaired persons now utilize a conventional cane to guide them when moving from one location to another. Although the standard cane is the most often used aid for visually impaired persons today, it cannot assist them in detecting threats at all levels of barriers. We present a novel intelligent method for assisting visually impaired or partially sighted people in this situation. The technology is designed to allow visually impaired individuals to walk with the same ease and confidence as sighted individuals.
The device also aids in the detection of potholes. The system is connected to a GSM-GPS module, which allows it to pinpoint the position of the visually impaired individual and create a two-way wireless communication connection. Furthermore, it uses ultrasonic sensors to offer direction information as well as information on how to avoid obstructions. The system also includes a buzzer and a vibrator motor. The entire system is meant to be compact and lightweight, and it works in tandem with the white cane. The blinds that employed this technique were able to move freely and safely, according to the findings.
According to the World Health Organization, there are 285 million individuals of all ages living with sight loss worldwide, with 39 million of them being visually impaired (WHO). The difficulty of autonomous navigation and mobility is one of the numerous challenges that a visually impaired person faces. Visually impaired people, in general, rely on sighted people to help them find their way or require an accompanying person to follow them, at least throughout the training phase. This means that the vast majority of visually impaired persons are unable to navigate in an unfamiliar environment on their own. A white cane or walking cane is commonly used by visionless people.
The employment of electronic-oriented equipment, such as an ultrasonic sensor, can help the visually handicapped. Energy waves are released ahead of time with this technique, then reflected from barriers in the user’s route and measured by a matching sensor. As a result, the distance to the barrier is computed based on the difference in time between the two signals. Using the vibration motor, we employed various vibration strengths to show the object’s distance. If the visually impaired person approaches the barrier too closely, the motor will vibrate more intensely and a buzzer will sound, signaling the visually impaired guy to go in a new way.
Additionally, the smart cane will be linked to the smart phone, allowing him to access maps. The GSM-GPS module receives the information from the GPS satellite and sends the latitude and longitude information as an SMS message to a predefined mobile number, which is used by visually impaired people to determine and verify the correct route. If the person falls on the ground, the GSM-GPS module receives the information from the GPS satellite and sends the latitude and longitude information as an SMS message to a predefined mobile number.
A person identified as visually impaired has a visual acuity of 20/70 or less in the stronger eye, whereas a person who is legally visually impaired has a visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the stronger eye. People with either of these degrees of visual acuity are eligible for government advantages such as the right to use a white cane or own a guide dog. The sight handicapped frequently use a white cane to increase their independence. The cane’s two principal roles are identification and safety.
It should warn the user of obstacles and changes in their route, as well as inform onlookers such as pedestrians and automobiles that the user has partial visual loss. Identification canes, support canes, and long canes are the three varieties of white canes. Support canes serve the same purpose as identification canes, but they offer extra support and balance to the user’s legs and body. Long canes, which were chosen to be converted into Smart Canes, reach the user’s sternum and give the greatest level of safety, alerting them to terrain and height changes, walls, doors, and hazards. They’re also the most noticeable to the rest of the group.
Indentation is required for all paragraphs. Justified alignment is required for all paragraphs. Both sides of the paragraph are straight when justified alignment is used.
The Arduino-based system keeps the user informed about the impending dangers. This type of assistance provides users with more information about their surroundings and allows them to make decisions more rapidly, letting them to move around more confidently and successfully. The cane can be utilized in the immediate surroundings, such as a park, at work, at home, or on a lengthy travel. Using the sensor and vibrations, the proposed assistive gadget helps a visionless person anticipate their surroundings.
Ultrasonic sensors are employed because they are less impacted by target materials or color, and they can detect things within a 4 meter range. External disturbances like as vibration, infrared radiation, ambient noise, and EMI radiation are all avoided using these ultrasonic sensors. A SRF-04 sensor was utilized. It produces an echo pulse and requires a brief trigger pulse. The module emits ultrasonic waves, which bounce back when they collide with objects or barriers in the user’s route. The sensor’s output is a change in voltage proportional to the obstacle’s distance. This technique may also be used to identify potholes.
The control sub-system is made up of an Arduino Board and an ATMEGA328P microprocessor. Arduino is an open-source single-board microcontroller that is a descendant of the open-source Wiring platform, making it simple to create electronic projects. The hardware for the Arduino board is a simple open hardware design with an Atmel AVR CPU and on-board input/output capability. A standard programming language compiler and a boot loader executed on the device make up the software. The sensor output is sent to an Arduino, which uses the software to determine the distance. When the acquired value is compared to the fixed value, a vibratory pattern with various intensities is created.
The technology is designed around a vibration motor that vibrates at three different strengths depending on the distance from the barrier. The vibration intensity will be quite strong if the impediment is fairly close. As the distance between the obstruction and the motor decreases, the intensity of the motor reduces.
A low-frequency piezo buzzer is used to signal that the barrier is extremely close to the person and that a collision is possible. In congested locations, a buzzer is utilized in conjunction with the vibration motor to inform the user.
When the GSM modem gets a message, the microcontroller processes it using the keyword stored in the message. The location of the stick will then be obtained from the GPS modem and transmitted to the GSM modem in order to react to the sender. In the event of an emergency, the user of the stick can press the emergency button, which will cause the microcontroller to access the position from the GPS modem and transfer the location to the GSM modem, which will send SMS messages to the system’s stored number.
The vibration motor is the device that notifies the user to obstructions in their way. The Arduino is linked to the motor, which is contained in the cane. The data from the ultrasonic sensor is analyzed by the Arduino and supplied to the vibration motor in the form of a matching PWM duty cycle. The vibration motor receives variable quantities of power depending on the number of pulses, causing the vibration motor to spin at different rates. These speeds fluctuate in discrete rather than continuous increments, resulting in one vibration intensity for a given range of distances. Furthermore, each distance corresponds to a certain delay between vibrations, with longer distances resulting in longer delays.
Features
Detection of Obstacles is one of the features listed
An ultrasonic sensor is connected to the Arduino Uno Board as part of the obstacle detection circuit. The obstacle range is determined once the sensor identifies the existence of an obstruction in each direction. If the distance between the vibration motor and the buzzer is less than 70cm, the vibration motor will vibrate at its maximum intensity. The vibration motor will vibrate with medium intensity if the distance is between 70cm and 150cm, and it will vibrate with reduced intensity if the distance is greater than 250cm.
Potholes Detection
An ultrasonic sensor and a buzzer are used in the pothole detecting system, which is controlled by an Arduino Uno. The operation of this circuit is based on the premise that in the event of a straight path, the height of the ultrasonic sensor positioned on the stick would remain constant. The buzzer will start buzzing if there is a perceptible increase in its height from the ground above a specific threshold level. This will aid the vision challenged in recognizing a pothole or stairwell ahead.
Calling in an Emergency
In an emergency, the GSM GPS module is used. In the event of an emergency, this module receives information from the GPS satellite in NMEA format and sends the latitude and longitude information as an SMS message to a predetermined cellphone number.
The smart cane’s purpose is to bring the white cane up to date in terms of technology while keeping the price low. The Smart Cane is aimed towards an aged, lower-income clientele that expects comfort, accessibility, and affordability from a product. The Smart Cane considerably enhances the object detecting range of the white cane by using an ultrasonic sensor, Arduino board, and vibration motor, therefore enhancing the lives of visually impaired users. In addition, the system’s GSM-GPS technology ensures security in emergency scenarios. Overall, technology offers many more benefits than the white cane, and it has made a significant contribution to improving the lives of the visually impaired.
