Development of a Digital Sign System for Indoor Wayfinding by the Visually Impair

描述（由申请人提供）：视障人士在不熟悉、复杂的室内空间（如学校或办公楼）中寻找道路是一项挑战。GPS技术已经被用于基于语音的导航，用于在室外环境中为视障人士寻路，但还没有相应的技术用于室内寻路。视力正常的行人有时会觉得在室内找路很困难，但他们通常可以在指示牌的帮助下找到路。无法方便地访问标识仍然是视觉障碍人士在室内寻路的主要障碍。明尼苏达大学低视力研究实验室的一个团队首次展示了“数字标志系统”（DSS）的可行性，该系统可以支持视障人士的室内导航。在第一阶段，该团队与AME公司合作开发了DSS系统的评估原型，并通过人体性能测试演示了其在非视觉室内导航中的应用。DSS系统由一个发射红外光束的手持设备组成。用户移动波束，直到返回反向反射条形码标志的反射。计算机软件“读取”标识的图像，并将其识别码输入建筑数据库。信息，包括标志的内容及其位置，然后从数据库中检索，并通过合成语音提供给用户。已开发并验证了所有系统组件的可行性原型。这个第二阶段项目的目标是开发一个用于人体测试的生产原型。工程工作将包括设计一个改进的光学组件和开发数字标签定位软件，该软件在原型中实时运行数字信号处理。该产品原型将用于评估视障行人通过DSS和一个带有语音用户界面的空间数据库（称为Building Navigator）进行室内寻路的效果。这些生产原型将具有商业可行性。公共卫生相关性：独立行动是充分参与现代社会的重要先决条件。行动不便和与之相关的社会孤立是视力丧失最严重的后果之一。数字标识系统是一项重要的新技术，可以帮助视力受损的人寻路，因为实施该系统所需的设施成本较低。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): It is challenging for visually-impaired people to find their way in unfamiliar, complex indoor spaces such as schools or office buildings. GPS technology has already been exploited for speech-based navigation for visually-impaired wayfinding in outdoor environments, but there is no equivalent technology for indoor wayfinding. Sighted pedestrians may sometimes find indoor wayfinding challenging, but they can usually find their way with the help of signage. The inability to easily access signage continues to be a major impediment to indoor wayfinding for people with visual disabilities. A team at the University of Minnesota Laboratory for Low-Vision Research, first demonstrated the feasibility of a "Digital Sign System" (DSS) to support indoor navigation for visually impaired people. In Phase I, this team worked in partnership with AME Corp. to develop evaluation prototype of the DSS system, and demonstrated its use for non-visual indoor navigation with human performance tests. The DSS system consists of a hand-held device that emits an infrared beam. The user pans the beam until a reflection from a retroreflective bar-coded sign is returned. Computer software "reads" the sign's image and feeds its identification code to a building database. Information, including the content of the sign and its position, is then retrieved from the database and provided to the user via synthetic speech. Feasibility prototypes of all system components have been developed and validated. The goal of this phase II project is to develop a production prototype for human testing. The engineering work will include designing an improved optical assembly and developing digital tag localization software that runs on a digital signal process in real time in the prototype. This production prototype will be used to evaluate the efficacy of indoor wayfinding by visually impaired pedestrians via DSS and a spatial database with speech-based user interface called the Building Navigator. These production prototypes will be commercially viable. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Independent mobility is an important prerequisite for full participation in modern society. Reduced mobility and associated social isolation are among the most debilitating consequences of vision loss. The Digital Sign System is a significant new technology to assist wayfinding for people with vision loss because of the low cost required for a facility to implement it.