References 207

Acknowledgement. The authors would like to acknowledge the kind assistance and permission of Professor Johann Borenstein (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA) to reproduce the two figures (Figures 5.8 and 5.9) on the Guidecane development. They would also like to thank GDP Research, Australia for permission to reproduce the photographs of the two versions of the Miniguide device.

Questions

Q.1 Draw the detailed block diagram for the assistive technology component of the CAT model.

Q.2 Summarise the differences between body-centric and external reference systems for mobility. Which is the more robust and why?

Q.3 List three advantages and three disadvantages of the use of a guide dog as an obstacle avoidance assistive technology.

Q.4 Compare and contrast the physical principles involved in using infrared light and ultrasound in a cane-based obstacle detection system.

Q.5 Take a typical street scene and list all the potential hazards and barriers to safe mobility for a visually impaired or blind person.

Q.6 List and describe briefly the main components of environmental accessibility.

Projects

P.1 Use the Internet to construct a historical chronology of the development of obstacle avoidance devices and aids. Correlate the sequence to a historical chronology of the technological developments used.

P.2 Obtain information on a number of different types of devices that use GPS or mobile telephone technology for giving positioning data. Determine which of these devices are accessible to:

(a)visually impaired people

(b)blind people

For devices that are not accessible, consider how they might be modified for blind and visually impaired travellers.

P.3 Conduct an accessibility audit of your local library for:

(a)visually impaired users

(b)blind users

Make recommendations for resolving any accessibility problems identified by your audit.

References

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