Haptic Virtual Environments to Enhance Navigation and Mobility of Blind People

触觉虚拟环境可增强盲人的导航和移动性

• 批准号: 7986453
• 负责人: MANDAYAM A SRINIVASAN
• 金额: $ 40.14万
• 依托单位: MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2010
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2010-09-01 至 2015-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/7986453
• 关键词: Acquaintances; Area; Canis familiaris; Categories; Cognitive; Cognitive Science; Collaborations; Complex; Destinations; Development; Devices; Diagnosis; Educational Curriculum; Educational process of instructing; Engineering; Environment; Face; Feedback; Floor; Foundations; Funding; Future; Goals; Grant; Hand; Home environment; Human; Individual; Information Technology; Internet; Knowledge; Learning; Libraries; Maps; Methods; Metric; Modeling; Motor; Operating System; Participant; Physical Efforts; Play; Positioning Attribute; Protocols documentation; Provider; Questionnaires; Rehabilitation Centers; Rehabilitation therapy; Research; Research Personnel; Research Project Grants; Robot; Role; Scientist; Sensory; Series; Services; Simulate; Sorting - Cell Movement; Space Explorations; Specialist; Speed; System; Teaching Method; Testing; Time; Touch sensation; Training; Transportation; Vision; Visit; Visual; Visual impairment; Visually Impaired Persons; Walking; Work; auditory feedback; base; blind; density; design; experience; flexibility; frontier; global environment; graphical user interface; haptics; improved; instructor; novel; operation; programs; public health relevance; research study; robotic device; skills; tool; usability; virtual; way finding

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Our ability to navigate spaces independently, safely and efficiently is a combined product of sensory, motor and cognitive skills. When navigating through an unknown environment, the sense of vision plays a primary role in guiding sighted people safely to their destination. Lacking this information, blind people face great difficulties in exploring new spaces. For most blind individuals, walking into an unknown environment can be quite unpleasant and uncomfortable even after extensive orientation and mobility (O&M) rehabilitation training. The current O&M teaching methods have significant deficiencies such as limits on exploration time, exploration space, the physical effort needed and the required number of repetitions. In this proposed continuation of a collaborative project (funded by a R21 Exploratory/Developmental research grant from NEI) between The Carroll Center and The Touch Lab at MIT, we propose to further develop BlindAid, a desktop virtual environment (VE) system with 3D haptic and 3D audio feedback with which blind users can interact with virtual models of real spaces in order to become familiar with the spaces and their content prior to visiting them. This project includes two categories of specific aims. The first set of specific aims is to design and develop a VE system for users who are blind. It includes the development of (a) a virtual environment editor for the instructor/experimenter, and (b) navigation tools, such as, a virtual guide agent, multi- scale environments and GPS compatibility. The second set of specific aims is to conduct experiments on the use of the VE system, as follows: (a) exploration of virtual models, (b) construction of cognitive maps, and (c) activation of the cognitive maps when traversing through real spaces. Exploring interactively in the VE is expected to give the people who are blind a holistic and flexible cognitive model that will help them control the information density, and to provide a stimulating, comprehensive and thorough acquaintance with the target space. As a result, the three long-term benefits of this research are (a) integrating the VE system into an O&M curriculum at rehabilitation centers to improve their training services for blind individuals; (b) developing a VE system that can be used to download spatial maps with haptic and auditory feedback via the Internet that are compatible with GPS systems; (c) integrating the use of VE system in K-12 academic curriculums. Associated benefits include the development of collaborative research between the O&M service providers and researchers in the advanced information technology and cognitive science research fields. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The proposed research project has been designed to expand the usability and usefulness of a novel virtual environment (VE) system that has been shown to help blind individuals explore and become familiar with unknown environments (e.g., a public transportation station or public library) before actually encountering and navigating through them. The planned experiments to evaluate this VE system with touch, feel, and audio interfaces can also contribute to the scientific understanding of how people who are blind construct and use cognitive maps of real spaces. This system can be integrated into the traditional orientation and mobility training curriculum at rehabilitation centers, or can be used to interact with downloaded spatial maps via the Internet, similar to the current map programs (e.g., Mapquest, Google Maps) that use a graphical interface for sighted users.

描述（由申请人提供）：我们独立，安全，有效地导航空间的能力是感觉，运动和认知技能的组合产品。当通过未知的环境导航时，视力感在指导人们安全到达目的地时起着主要作用。缺乏这些信息，盲人在探索新空间方面面临着巨大的困难。对于大多数盲人的人来说，即使经过广泛的方向和移动性（O＆M）康复训练，走进未知环境也可能是令人不快和不舒服的。当前的O＆M教学方法具有严重的缺陷，例如探索时间，勘探空间，所需的体力工作和所需重复数量的限制。 In this proposed continuation of a collaborative project (funded by a R21 Exploratory/Developmental research grant from NEI) between The Carroll Center and The Touch Lab at MIT, we propose to further develop BlindAid, a desktop virtual environment (VE) system with 3D haptic and 3D audio feedback with which blind users can interact with virtual models of real spaces in order to become familiar with the spaces and their content prior to visiting them.该项目包括两类特定目标。第一组特定的目的是为盲人设计和开发一个VE系统。它包括（a）为讲师/实验者的虚拟环境编辑器的开发，以及（b）导航工具，例如虚拟指南，多尺度环境和GPS兼容性。第二组特定的目的是进行有关VE系统使用的实验，如下：（a）探索虚拟模型，（b）认知图的构建以及（c）在穿过真实空间时激活认知图。预计在VE中进行交互性探索将使盲人的人是一个整体且灵活的认知模型，这将有助于他们控制信息密度，并为目标空间提供刺激，全面和彻底的相识。结果，这项研究的三个长期好处是（a）将VE系统整合到康复中心的O＆M课程中，以改善对盲人的培训服务； （b）开发一个可用于通过Internet兼容GPS系统的触觉和听觉反馈的VE系统； （c）在K-12学术课程中整合VE系统的使用。相关的好处包括开发高级信息技术和认知科学研究领域的O＆M服务提供商与研究人员之间的合作研究。 公共卫生相关性：拟议的研究项目旨在扩大新型虚拟环境（VE）系统的可用性和实用性，该系统被证明可以帮助盲人探索并熟悉未知环境（例如，公共交通站或公共图书馆），然后才真正遇到并通过它们进行导航。计划的实验以触摸，感觉和音频接口评估该VE系统，也可以有助于对盲人构建和使用真实空间认知图的人的科学理解。该系统可以集成到康复中心的传统取向和移动性培训课程中，也可以通过Internet与下载的空间图进行交互，类似于当前的地图程序（例如MapQuest，Google，Google Maps），该程序使用图形界面供视力用户进行。