7 ms·

I've just realized that there are probably raging internet debates about what kind of cane tips are best. I'm not sure why I think I'm surprised by this realiza

by saulrh 6y ago

I've just realized that there are probably raging internet debates about what kind of cane tips are best. I'm not sure why I think I'm surprised by this realization. As for "smart canes", I always figured it'd be more useful to have a fixed single-point LIDAR on a rigid head mount with some fast, imprecise output device like an eccentric buzzer motor with logarithmic amplitude for distance. Point head, get rough distance, just enough to get a general impression of how far away a wall is or where there's an opening. Apparently this isn't what people are talking about when they complain about worse-than-useless smart canes, though? It seems really obvious that speech synthesis might be the worst possible output system for something like this. /ramble

tpmx 6y ago
"lidar for the blind" -> https://www.fastcompany.com/90574130/this-startup-wants-to-replace-the-white-cane-for-blind-people https://www.fastcompany.com/90574130/this-startup-wants-to-r... Some people call it a https://twitter.com/hashtag/DisabilityDongle https://twitter.com/hashtag/DisabilityDongle though.
- adamcstephens 6y ago
  Yeah I was thinking chest would be more ergonomic.
- saulrh 6y ago
  I can see why people don't like that one, yeah. It obviously can't replace the cane; you're always going to need at least one tool available that's as infallible as having a chunk of rigid stuff actually run into an obstacle or fall off an edge. It wouldn't even be useful in addition to a cane due to the awful ergonomics and interface.
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
  - Udik 6y ago
    What about fingertip mounted (rings, basically) small ultrasonic sensors? Each could be mostly independent (save for battery, I guess) and exploring the space would be as easy as slightly waving and tilting the hand. Tactile feedback would go straight to the fingertip. Quick to wear and remove.
    - tpmx 6y ago
      Perhaps wrist bands would be more feasible with current battery/sensor tech, but, yeah.
      - Udik 6y ago
        The advantage of the fingertips is that they're sensitive and especially, they're extremely mobile. I imagine that if the sensors were mounted on the fingertips of a glove, on the back of the hand and pointed orthogonally to the plane of the hand, it would be fairly natural to develop a sort of "saccadic hand movement" to get a rapid perception of the surroundings.
        tpmx 6y ago
        Yeah, a glove would allow for much more battery capacity, of course.
    - saulrh 6y ago
      Can't obstruct fingertips, those are necessary for the cane and braille. Glove might work, but I'd worry about it competing with cold-weather gear like mittens. Was why I was thinking of a rigid head-mount.
      - Udik 6y ago
        > Can't obstruct fingertips, those are necessary for the cane and braille. Wear it on the left hand? Also, a glove is pretty quick to wear and remove. > I'd worry about it competing with cold-weather gear like mittens If it's useful, I don't think it would be an issue to create a "winter version". > I was thinking of a rigid head-mount If you hold your hand in front of your chest with the palm towards the chest, and wave it, you can appreciate how easy it is to scan the space in front of you. And the feedback would be directly on the fingertips, 1cm away from the sensor placed on the nail side of the finger, which makes for a very self-contained device. Also you get a free association between your self-perceived hand position and the space reading, which is nice. With a fixed head mount you need to constantly move your entire head to scan the space and the (tactile) feedback might be on an unrelated and less sensitive part of the body.

by saulrh 6y ago

tpmx 6y ago

"lidar for the blind" -> https://www.fastcompany.com/90574130/this-startup-wants-to-replace-the-white-cane-for-blind-people https://www.fastcompany.com/90574130/this-startup-wants-to-r... Some people call it a https://twitter.com/hashtag/DisabilityDongle https://twitter.com/hashtag/DisabilityDongle though.

adamcstephens 6y ago
Yeah I was thinking chest would be more ergonomic.
saulrh 6y ago
I can see why people don't like that one, yeah. It obviously can't replace the cane; you're always going to need at least one tool available that's as infallible as having a chunk of rigid stuff actually run into an obstacle or fall off an edge. It wouldn't even be useful in addition to a cane due to the awful ergonomics and interface.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- Udik 6y ago
  What about fingertip mounted (rings, basically) small ultrasonic sensors? Each could be mostly independent (save for battery, I guess) and exploring the space would be as easy as slightly waving and tilting the hand. Tactile feedback would go straight to the fingertip. Quick to wear and remove.
  - tpmx 6y ago
    Perhaps wrist bands would be more feasible with current battery/sensor tech, but, yeah.
    - Udik 6y ago
      The advantage of the fingertips is that they're sensitive and especially, they're extremely mobile. I imagine that if the sensors were mounted on the fingertips of a glove, on the back of the hand and pointed orthogonally to the plane of the hand, it would be fairly natural to develop a sort of "saccadic hand movement" to get a rapid perception of the surroundings.
      - tpmx 6y ago
        Yeah, a glove would allow for much more battery capacity, of course.
  - saulrh 6y ago
    Can't obstruct fingertips, those are necessary for the cane and braille. Glove might work, but I'd worry about it competing with cold-weather gear like mittens. Was why I was thinking of a rigid head-mount.
    - Udik 6y ago
      > Can't obstruct fingertips, those are necessary for the cane and braille. Wear it on the left hand? Also, a glove is pretty quick to wear and remove. > I'd worry about it competing with cold-weather gear like mittens If it's useful, I don't think it would be an issue to create a "winter version". > I was thinking of a rigid head-mount If you hold your hand in front of your chest with the palm towards the chest, and wave it, you can appreciate how easy it is to scan the space in front of you. And the feedback would be directly on the fingertips, 1cm away from the sensor placed on the nail side of the finger, which makes for a very self-contained device. Also you get a free association between your self-perceived hand position and the space reading, which is nice. With a fixed head mount you need to constantly move your entire head to scan the space and the (tactile) feedback might be on an unrelated and less sensitive part of the body.