I-Corps: BlindNav: Indoor Navigation for the Visually Impaired

目前，在没有视力正常的人的帮助下，盲人很少有办法在新的室内空间中导航。该项目提出的技术旨在通过识别环境的语义和显著视觉特征，使视力受损的个人能够在大型室内环境（如机场，火车站和购物中心）中找到自己的路。无需事先访问或绘制环境地图，也无需部署或使用任何特殊基础设施，如WiFi接入点或红外信标。研究人员计划使用可获得的建筑布局和有关船只，轨道，大门和其他视觉线索的位置信息。该平台是一个安装在项链上的手机，通过音频语音命令界面提供逐向导航。该技术旨在使用文本和徽标检测实时处理来自手机摄像头的视频，基于布局的先验知识以及加速度计和视觉里程计的集成进行定位。美国的盲人和视力受损人口很大，预计未来还会增长。如果成功实施，这项技术可能会有更广泛的应用，包括许多基于位置的服务，例如帮助那些有空间学习困难的人或引导用户到特定位置。项目团队拥有以相对快速和经济的成本开发这项技术所需的专业知识。

There are currently very few ways for the blind to navigate a new indoor space without the assistance of a fully-sighted person. The technology proposed by this project is designed to enable a visually-impaired individual to find their way through large indoor environments such as airports, train stations and shopping malls by recognizing semantic and salient visual features of the environment. There is no prior visit or mapping of the environment required, and there is no need to deploy or utilize any special infrastructure like WiFi access points or infrared beacons. Researchers plan to use publically available architectural lay-outs and information about the location of ships, tracks, gates and other visual cues. The platform is a cell-phone mounted on a necklace that provides turn-by-turn directions through an audio-voice command interface. This technology is designed to process video from the cell phone camera in real-time using text and logo detection, localization based on prior knowledge of the layout and integration of accelerometer and visual odometry.The blind and visually-impaired population in the United States is large and expected to grow in the future. If successfully implemented, this technology could have broader reaching applications, including many location-based services such as aiding those with spatial learning difficulties or guiding users to a specific location. The project team has the expertise required to develop this technology at a relatively rapid rate and economical cost.