In response to a challenge issued by the National Federation of the Blind Virginia Tech’s Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory built a semi-autonomous vehicle out of an all-terrain buggy that uses a laser range finder and sensory technology that allows a blind driver to operate it. The driver wears a vest that vibrates in different places for different signals. The back, stomach and shoulders all mean different commands, except when the whole vest vibrates, which essentially means “hit the brakes now!” It also has a system that blasts compressed air through tiny holes in a screen to create a tactile map that the driver can feel to determine the car’s immediate surroundings.
[Source:
KickingTires]
