Navigation Aid for the Blind P12015

1. Navigation Aid for the Blind P12015 Clientele: Blind and hard of hearing individuals Faculty Guide: Dr. DeBartolo Team Members: (from left) • Project Description: • Navigating unfamiliar buildings can be difficult for a vision/hearing-impaired individual. While room numbers are usually in Braille only about ten percent of blind individuals read Braille. Additionally, floor maps are usually not in relief and thus impossible for the blind to read. The purpose of this project was to develop a handheld navigation system for vision/hearing-impaired individuals. The device uses radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags to calculate positions and the quickest routes to destinations. • Project Requirements: • Charge in less than 8 hours • Interchangeable battery • Commands to user must be non-visual • Device generates less than 50 dB noise • Attachment time less than one minute • Impact resistant • Lightweight • Hands free • Reliable Electrical Design PCB Design Layout Software Design • Two Step Navigation Process: Path Finding and Path Following • Path finding algorithm is an implementation on Dijkstra’s algorithm • Path following algorithm interprets the data found from the path finding algorithm to guide the user to their destination. • Management of Peripheral Devices: • Custom Interface for Keypad • SPI Interface for RFID Reader • I2C Interface for Magnetometer • PWM Output for Vibration Motors Mechanical Design This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Award No. BES-0527358. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.