Sole Mate: Safe Path-Finding by Obstacle Detection and Distance Estimation for the Blind

The world has increased its demand for assistive technology (AT). There are a lot of researches and developments going on with respect to AT. Among the AT devices which are being developed, the need for a reliable and less expensive device which serves as an assistance for a visually challenged person is in serious demand all around the world. We, therefore, intend to provide a solution for this by constructing a device that has the capability to detect the obstacles within a given range for a visually challenged person and alerting the person about the obstacles. This involves various components like a camera for image detection, an ultrasonic distance sensor for distance estimation and a vibration motor which works on the principle of Haptic feedback and rotates with varied intensities depending on how far the obstacle is from the user. This paper presents a model which is a part of the footwear of the user and hence, no additional device is required to hold onto for assistance. The model involves the use of a microcontroller, a camera, to dynamically perceive the obstacles and a haptic feedback system to alert the person about the same. The camera dynamically acquires the real time video footage which is further processed by the microcontroller to detect the obstacles. Simultaneously, one more algorithm is being executed to estimate the distance with the help of an ultrasonic distance sensor. Depending on the distance, the frequency of the vibration motor, which acts as the output for notifying the user about the obstacle, is varied (haptic feedback). With this system, a visually challenged person will be able to avoid the obstacles successfully without the use of any additional device.