USC Researchers Develop “Guide Vests” for the Visually Impaired

May 30th, 2011 Net News, Rehab


Researchers from the Viterbi School of Engineering at the University of Southern California

Image from head-mounted camera (top) and 3D rendering from SLAM software (bottom)

have developed a high-tech device for helping visually-impaired people get around. The system consists of a head-mounted camera connected to a computer that uses a special software, called Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM), to convert images of the environment into three-dimensional spatial maps to determine a safe route around obstacles.

The route information is sent to a vest containing four motors on each side of a person’s shoulder and waist that vibrate if an obstacle is in his or her path.

Recall that we also wrote a couple months ago about a similar setup from the University of Konstanz in Germany that uses a hacked Microsoft Kinect sensor to assist in navigation.

Full story: ‘Guide vests’ — robotic navigation aids for the visually impaired …

Scott Jung (@scottjung) is a Silicon Valley-based medical and health technology reporter and advocate, with a focus on wearables, telemedicine, and health technology in emerging countries. He has represented Medgadget at CES and Digital Health Summit, TEDMED, Stanford Medicine X, and SXSW. Always on the lookout for innovative medical technology worldwide, Scott has been invited to visit Colombia, Poland, and many other countries around the world to share how medtech is enriching the lives of its people. Scott holds a B.S. degree in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Southern California and an M.S. degree in Medical Product Development Management from San José State University. Scott is always looking for the next big thing in medical technology and digital health. Interested in helping him transform lives? Get in touch with him at http://scottju.ng

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