Guiding Blind Pedestrians with a Personal Navigation System

With the assistance provided by the white cane or guide dog, most blind pedestrians can find their way to known destinations along familiar routes. Finding new or known destinations along unfamiliar routes is more challenging. Before such a journey is attempted, detailed instructions must be acquired. The difficulty of obtaining and then reliably following such instructions deters many blind pedestrians from travelling alone in unknown areas. This paper demonstrates a technological approach, by way of field trials, that supplements the existing aids and eliminates the need for sighted guides. The approach has the potential to offer greater independence to the blind person. The investigation suggests that the methodology used in personal navigation systems for the sighted is sub-optimal for guiding the blind pedestrian. Suitable extensions are introduced, and the results show the proposed methodology is efficient for guiding the blind individual to unknown destinations in the chosen field trial environment.

A Study of the Tactual and Visual Reception of Fingerspelling

A method of communication in frequent use among members of the deaf-blind community is the tactual reception of fingerspelling. In this method, the hand of the deaf-blind individual is placed on the hand of the sender to monitor the handshapes and movements associated with the letters of the manual alphabet. The purpose of the current study was to examine the ability of experienced deaf-blind subjects to receive fingerspelled materials, including sentences and connected text, through the tactual sense. A parallel study of the reception of fingerspelling through the visual sense was also conducted using sighted deaf subjects. For both visual and tactual reception of fingerspelled sentences, accuracy of reception was examined as a function of rate of presentation. In the tactual study, where rates were limited to those that could be produced naturally by an experienced interpreter, highly accurate reception of conversational sentence materials was observed throughout the range of naturally produced rates (i.e., 2 to 6 letters/s). In the visual study, rates in excess of those that can be produced naturally were achieved through variable-speed playback of videotapes of fingerspelled sentences. The results of this study indicate that performance varies systematically as a function of rate of presentation, with scores of 50% correct on conversational sentences obtained at rates of 12 to 16 letters/s (i.e., rates roughly double to triple normal speed). These results suggest that normal communication rates for the visual reception of fingerspelling are restricted by limitations on the rate of manual production. Although maximal rates of natural manual production of fingerspelling correspond to the presentation of a new handshape on the order of once every 150–200 ms, the data from the sped-up visual study suggest that experienced receivers of visual fingerspelling are able to receive sentences at substantially higher rates of fingerspelling (which are, in fact, comparable to communication rates for spoken English).

Writing, Computers, and Visual Impairment

This article reviews studies on how both blind and sighted individuals write, elements of the writing process, and books that describe programs to help writers. These studies show that writing, for the blind individual, places an enormous burden on short-term memory, since it must be utilized to retrieve information from long-term memory and to monitor text transcriptions, grammar, the mechanics of composition, and spelling. Tools to help the blind writer are discussed in detail. Text access, a major hurdle, is met head-on. Yet computers that facilitate access with alternate outputs, braille translation programs, and other adaptive devices will help the visually impaired or blind individual only if schools can acquire them and only if they are priced to allow individuals to buy them for home use. In conclusion, solutions to problems are offered to stimulate the reader to think about the cognitive and curricular implications of computer technology for visually impaired individuals now and in the future.

Physically Handicapped Blind People: Adaptive Mobility Techniques

Describes adaptive techniques used to evaluate and teach mobility to the physically handicapped blind individual, with emphasis on users of wheelchairs and walkers. We stress the importance of working closely with physical therapists and/or other rehabilitation professionals involved with the client to jointly determine the most suitable orthopedic devices. The use of electronic travel aids is discussed, and a system designed by the authors to mount the Mowat Sensor to a walker is described.

The use and safety of Ibuprofen in the hemophiliac

After demonstrating initial safety of Ibuprofen administered to hemophiliacs, a 16-wk double-blind individual crossover trial was designed to test the safety and, to a more limited extent, the efficacy of 1600 mg of Ibuprofen or placebo given daily to 20 hemophiliacs with hemophiliac arthropathy. The trial was completed with no evidence of increased frequency or severity of hemophiliac bleeding episodes or clinical or laboratory evidence of bleeding secondary to Ibuprofen. There were five treatment failures, none associated with hemorrhage or lack of compliance. A benefit was obtained in reduction of early morning stiffness and pain. Ibuprofen should be considered as a safe and potentially beneficial antiinflammatory agent in the treatment of carefully monitored hemophiliacs eligible for such therapy.

The use and safety of Ibuprofen in the hemophiliac

After demonstrating initial safety of Ibuprofen administered to hemophiliacs, a 16-wk double-blind individual crossover trial was designed to test the safety and, to a more limited extent, the efficacy of 1600 mg of Ibuprofen or placebo given daily to 20 hemophiliacs with hemophiliac arthropathy. The trial was completed with no evidence of increased frequency or severity of hemophiliac bleeding episodes or clinical or laboratory evidence of bleeding secondary to Ibuprofen. There were five treatment failures, none associated with hemorrhage or lack of compliance. A benefit was obtained in reduction of early morning stiffness and pain. Ibuprofen should be considered as a safe and potentially beneficial antiinflammatory agent in the treatment of carefully monitored hemophiliacs eligible for such therapy.

A System to Enable the Blind to Work Independently on the Center Lathe

So far industries have employed the blind only on repetitive tasks. Even when employed as machinists their role has been limited to the operation of capstan lathes and drilling machines preset by a sighted individual for preparing one type of job. This study shows that with suitable accessories to machines and appropriate work planning totally blind machinists can perform varied tasks independently. Based on the results of the study, simple accessories have been designed and tested for use with the center lathe. With these accessories the blind individual can perform all operations including turning, slotting, threading, drilling and taper turning to specified dimensions. This work may be done fully independently. Speed of work is about 75% of that of the sighted individual.