GUIDING DEVICES

• US 3,718,896 A
• Filed: 03/27/1970
• Issued: 02/27/1973
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/1969
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Geoffrey C. Mowat
• Original Assignee: Geoffrey C. Mowat
• Inventors: Mowat, Geoffrey C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Farley, Richard A.
• Application Number:
  US05/023,283
• Time in Patent Office: 1,068 Days
• Field of Search: 340/1R,3E,3R 343/7.5
• US Class Current: 367/95
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/04 Systems determining presence of a target
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/12 wherein the pulse-recurrence frequency is varied to provide a desired time relationship between the transmission of a pulse and the receipt of the echo of a preceding pulse
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/527 Extracting wanted echo signals Doppler systems G01S15/50
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 21/003 using tactile presentation of the information, e.g. Braille displays
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 367/91 Portable sonar devices

Abstract

A blindman'"'"''"'"'s cane has contained within it a transmitter that transmits pulses of energy in a directional manner and also a receiver which accepts the first returned pulse of those transmitted and rejects all others for a predetermined period. The first returned pulse activates a device such as a vibrator to give the user an indication of an approaching object. The rate of vibration of the vibrator alters to give an indication of the closeness of the object.

Claims

1. A guiding or distance measuring device comprising a transmitting means adapted to transmit pulses of energy in a directional manner, a receiving means adapted to receive reflected pulses of energy passing back to the device from objects which have reflected the transmitted pulses, selecting means including an astable multivibrator, said selecting means being adapted to select the first reflected pulse received by said receiving means after a transmitted pulse has been sent out from said transmitting means, selection of said first reflected pulse causing the operating state of said multivibrator to reverse from a first state to a second state for a selected predetermined period of time so that reflected pulses arriving from objects further afield do not affect said multivibrator, indicating means actuated by said multivibrator and adapted to indicate to a user the distance from the user of the object which returns said first reflected pulse, and automatic recycling means wherein said multivibrator after said selected predetermined period of time, reverts to its first state, from its second state, at the same time pulsing the transmitter into operation thus re-commencing the cycle of events.

2. A guiding device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the operating cycle of said cycle of events is in an inverse relationship to the range of said first reflected pulse.

3. A guiding device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the parameters of said multi-vibrator circuit are such that said selected predetermined period of time becomes shorter as the path travelled by said first reflected pulse becomes shorter, said shortening of said selected predetermined period of time being in addition to the reduction of time said multivibrator is in said first state because of the reduced path travelled by said first reflected pulse.

4. A guiding device as claimed in claim 3, wherein said indicating means comprises an electro-magnetically operable vibrating means on which the user can place a finger or other part of his body, the frequency of the vibration indicating the distance of the object from the user.

5. A guiding device as claimed in claim 4, wherein said transmitting means includes a transducer which sends out energy in the form of sound waves of ultra-sonic frequency, and said receiving means comprises a transducer which converts received energy in the form of sound waves of ultra sonic frequency into pulses of electrical energy, and a series of amplifiers.