Navigation device for the visually-impaired
First Claim
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1. A hand-held device for allowing a visually-impaired user to navigate an environment, the device comprising:
- a housing defining an interior space of said device;
an object location means contained within said housing and having access to an environment external to the housing through an opening therein, the object location means configured to identify the location of objects external to said hand-held device in real time;
a processor in electronic communication with said object location means and programmed to receive information from the object location means; and
a speaker in electronic communication with said processor for delivering audio information to a user of said hand-held device,wherein the hand-held device is programmed to provide a user of the hand-held device with audio instructions, via said speaker, for navigating through the detected objects.
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Abstract
A hand-held device for allowing the visually-impaired to navigate an environment includes a housing defining an interior space of the device. The device recognizes the position of objects in the environment external to the device and is programmed to determine a path through the objects. A speaker delivers audio instructions to a user of the device regarding the pathway through the objects. A method of navigating through such objects is provided by the device.
11 Citations
15 Claims
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1. A hand-held device for allowing a visually-impaired user to navigate an environment, the device comprising:
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a housing defining an interior space of said device; an object location means contained within said housing and having access to an environment external to the housing through an opening therein, the object location means configured to identify the location of objects external to said hand-held device in real time; a processor in electronic communication with said object location means and programmed to receive information from the object location means; and a speaker in electronic communication with said processor for delivering audio information to a user of said hand-held device, wherein the hand-held device is programmed to provide a user of the hand-held device with audio instructions, via said speaker, for navigating through the detected objects. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A hand-held device for allowing a visually-impaired individual to navigate an environment, the device comprising:
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a housing; a camera attached to said housing; a radio module attached to said housing; a processor in electronic communication with said camera and said radio module; and a speaker in electronic communication with said processor for delivering audio instructions to a user of said hand-held device, wherein the hand-held device is a dedicated device for use in navigation by a visually-impaired user, and further wherein said device is programmed to recognize the position of objects in the immediate environment of said hand-held device via said camera and said radio module, and to provide the user of said device with audio instructions, via speaker, for navigating through the detected objects. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11)
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12. A method of navigating an environment, the method comprising the steps of:
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acquiring via a hand-held device information relating to the real-time position of a plurality of objects immediately external to the hand-held device; processing the information with the hand-held device, the hand-held device determining a navigation path to allow a user thereof to navigate the plurality of objects in the environment; and delivering in audio form, via the hand-held device, instructions to said user regarding the navigation path, thereby instructing the user as to how to navigate through the plurality of objects. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15)
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Specification