Chandigarh, Aug 18: Simplifying lives of visually impaired people, two Chandigarh University students, Amit Ranjan and Simran Thakur, have developed first-of-its-kind Smart Glasses which will help visually impaired people in avoiding accidents by ensuring hassle-free obstacle detection for easy movement at public places.
Bringing laurels to Chandigarh University, Amit Ranjan and Simran Thakur have won 1st prize for "Building Smart Glasses for the Blind" project from Indian Institute of Technology Ropar. These smart glasses were also displayed at Chandigarh University's Projects Expo and Engineers Day.
As over 88 per cent of visually impaired people (blind) experience accidents during their lifetime according to a research paper published in a renowned international journal, the Smart Glasses would help visually impaired people in safe navigation in their daily life.
While sharing details, Amit Ranjan and Simran Thakur said: "After we observed that visually impaired people face difficulty while moving around in public places, we decided to develop a device which can aid them in easy and safe movement in public places. Usually, the blind people use stick for obstacle detection to move around but if they forget to take it along then they face a lot of difficulty in public places. We wanted to develop a device for the blind people which they won't have to carry with them separately so we developed these smart glasses which they can wear that ensures hassle-free obstacle detection thereby assisting them in easy movement.
"These smart glasses giver real-time and accurate information about surroundings and potential dangers. This unique device also epitomizes the spirit of innovation harnessed for a good purpose by using technology to restore a sense of empowerment and choice, presenting a beacon of hope and development for a bright and more inclusive future."
These smart glasses have Arduino Nano, ultrasonic sensor, buzzer, haptic feedback motor, lithium-ion battery, step-up module, connecting wire and charging module.
The ultrasonic sensor detects the surrounding objects and sends the data to the Arduino Nano. When an obstacle is within a certain range, the Arduino Nano activates the buzzer and haptic motor. The buzzer then sends auditory signals and the haptic motor generates tactile signals, letting the user know the position of the obstacle. The charging module allows the battery to be charged safely. This in turn helps the blind people to detect obstacles in their path and navigate safely. These two innovative students have filed to get patent rights for this unique device.
