PERCEPT: RFID-Enabled Smart Pavement Technology For Visually Impaired

描述(申请人提供)：全球有1.61亿人患有视力障碍，如果不进行干预，预计到2020年这一数字将几乎翻一番。由于盲人和视障人士对环境的感知能力降低，他们在独立生活方面遇到了严重的问题。新的环境给他们带来了巨大的挑战，他们要在不向他人寻求帮助的情况下感知周围的环境。目前在大学环境下为盲人和视障人士提供的培训计划要求他们记住许多建筑物的大量信息，这导致他们的挫折感增加。要为盲人和视障人士建立一个有效的辅助技术系统，最大的挑战之一是在一个能够解决这些问题的软件系统中对他们所面临的现实问题进行建模。为了增强盲人和视障人士对室内和陌生环境的感知，并帮助他们在这样的环境中导航，我们提出了一种提供上下文感知导航服务的新方法。PerceptSpace是使用RFID(射频识别)、标记空间(音频地标、信息亭)和蓝牙轨迹生成的，它使无所不在的计算系统能够对其用户进行上下文感知，同时为他们提供持久的上下文感知信息。我们提出了称为Percept的系统体系结构，它支持许多独特的特征，例如：a)低部署成本；b)可伸缩性，即我们可以在非常大的建筑物中部署该系统；c)不会使用户不堪重负的按需系统，因为它按需提供少量信息；以及d)可携带性和易用性，即用户携带的设备紧凑而熟悉，并且可以通过声音接收指令。拟议的系统将补充现有的盲人行动和定向辅助工具，如拐杖和/或狗。该提案的总体目标是开发、部署和测试感知系统。因此，我们有两个具体的目标：1)设计和创建一个初始感知系统原型，以帮助盲人和视障人士在陌生的室内环境中导航；2)评估感知系统的性能。我们假设，感知系统将显示出更高的准确性、更短的到达目的地的时间、传播的信息水平，增强感知而不会感到不知所措、减少挫折感、用户友好性和较高的总体满意度。Percept与其他系统在以下方面不同：1)它向用户提供他们可以处理的小块信息，并根据他们的选择进行处理，不同于Chatty Environment；2)它通过使用PDA在终端设备中提供便携性；3)它不需要视线操作；4)它涉及可扩展和廉价的部署(包括无源RFID和蓝牙跟踪)，同时利用现有的通信基础设施，如WiFi。 公共卫生相关性：在全球范围内，有1.61亿人患有视力障碍，如果不进行干预，预计到2020年，这一数字将几乎翻一番。由于盲人和视障人士对新环境的感知能力下降，他们在独立生活方面遇到了严重的问题。我们提出了一种系统，该系统使用配备RFID和蓝牙的PDA作为终端设备，提供对新室内环境的增强感知。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Worldwide, 161 million people have vision impairment, and without intervention that number is expected to almost double by 2020. The blind and visually-impaired encounter serious problems in leading an independent life due to their reduced perception of the environment. New environments pose a huge challenge for them to perceive their surroundings without seeking help from others. Current training programs for blind and visually-impaired people in University settings require them to memorize a large amount of information for numerous buildings, leading to an increase in frustration on their part. To build an effective assistive technology system for the blind and visually-impaired, one of the biggest challenges is to model real-world problems faced by them in a software system that could address these issues. In order to enhance the perception of indoor and unfamiliar environments of the blind and visually- impaired, as well as to aid in their navigation through such environments, we propose a novel approach that provides context-aware navigation services. PerceptSpace, which is generated using RFID (Radio Frequency Identification), tagged spaces (audio landmarks, kiosks), and Bluetooth tracks, enables a ubiquitous computing system with contextual awareness of its users while providing them persistent and context-aware information. We present the system architecture called PERCEPT that supports a number of unique features such as: a) Low deployment cost; b) Scalability, i.e. we can deploy the system in very large buildings; c) An on- demand system that does not overwhelm the user, as it offers small amounts of information on demand; and d) Portability and ease-of-use, i.e., the device carried by the user is compact and familiar, and instructions are received audibly. The proposed system will complement existing mobility and orientation aids for the blind, such as the cane and/or dog. The overall goal of this proposal is to develop, deploy, and test the PERCEPT system. Accordingly, we have two Specific Aims: 1) To design and create an initial PERCEPT system prototype that will assist the blind and visually-impaired in navigating through unfamiliar indoor environments and 2) to evaluate the performance of the PERCEPT system. We hypothesize that the PERCEPT system will show increased accuracy, improved time to destination, a level of information disseminated that enhances perception without feeling overwhelming, decreased frustration, user-friendliness, and high overall satisfaction. PERCEPT is different from other systems in the following aspects: 1) it offers small pieces of information to the users that can be handled by them and on their choice, unlike the Chatty Environment; 2) it offers portability in the end-device by using a PDA; 3) it does not require line-of-sight operation; and 4) it involves a scalable and inexpensive deployment (includes passive RFID and Bluetooth tracks) while leveraging existing communication infrastructure such as WiFi. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Worldwide, 161 million people have vision impairment, and without intervention that number is expected to almost double by 2020. The blind and visually-impaired encounter serious problems in leading an independent life due to their reduced perception of new environments. We propose a system that provides enhanced perception of new indoor environments using RFID- equipped and Bluetooth-enabled PDAs as the end device.