[adeel420] Satellite tracking device opens new world to the blind!!!
- From: "Sajid Iqbal" <sajid_cyberspace@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <"Undisclosed-Recipient:;"@smtp-1.hotpop.com>
- Date: Thu, 28 Nov 2002 01:53:32 +0500
here's something interesting for you to read!
Satellite tracking device opens new world to the blind.
By Alexandra Frean Social Affairs Correspondent, THE TIMES
A high-tech city navigation system for blind people that can pinpoint
individual shops and restaurants and map out a street-by-street route
for users was introduced to Britain yesterday.
The device, the Victor Trekker, uses a global positioning satellite
(GPS) receiver hooked up to a tiny handheld computer with an
electronic voice-box that tells users where they are and gives
precise directions.
It promises to revolutionise travel for visually impaired people,
offering them unprecedented levels of independence and confidence in
moving around.
Ivan Legace, vice-president of VisuAid, the Canadian-based company
that developed the device in association with the Royal National
Institute for the Blind (RNIB), said that it will enable visually
impaired people to find their way around virtually any major city in
the Western world on their own.
"As people walk along, the device tells them via a tiny speaker the
name of the street they are on," he said. "It also tells them the
names of any cross streets and lets them know when they are on a new
street.
"The digital maps we use can also locate individual restaurants,
hotels, bars and train and bus stations. So the Victor Trekker will
be able to tell them what shops and buildings they are walking past
and say, 'here is a French restaurant, Le Bistro, and here is an
Italian restaurant, Marco's'. "People will also be able to enter a
destination and the Victor Trekker will tell them how to get there,"
he said.
The device, on view at the RNIB's Vision 2002 exhibition in
Birmingham yesterday, builds on the success of GPS technology, used
in boats, aircraft and cars. The worldwide radio-navigation system
picks up signals from 24 US military satellites and their ground
stations to pinpoint locations to within about a metre.
Although work on the Victor Trekker started ten years ago, it is only
in the past year that handheld computers, known as personal digital
assistants (PDAs), with enough power to use the necessary software
have become available. "When we started out, the computer required
was so heavy that you had to walk around with a laptop and a backpack
full of hardware," Mr Legace said.
The device integrates off-the-shelf GPS hardware with software
developed to meet the needs of visually impaired people. This
includes voice output to give directions and an option for voice
input. It can also be used with an electronic Braille note-taker to
give written as well as verbal directions.
The speaker and GPS receiver are worn on a shoulder strap, while the
PDA, measuring 12.7cm by 5cm by 2.5cm (5in by 2in by 1in), fits
comfortably into a pocket or handbag. Visually impaired people rely
heavily on their hearing to help them to get about, so the device
does not use headphones.
Mr Legace said that it would not replace the white cane or guide dog
as it could not detect small obstacles 0.6m to 0.9m (2ft to 3ft) in
front of people as they walked. Coverage can also be restricted in
narrow streets with tall buildings.
The system has maps for most Western countries, which can be bought
on-line and downloaded, or delivered on CD. The first models should
be in the shops early next year and will cost Pounds 1,100, although
manufacturers believe that the price will drop as the cost of PDAs
falls.
Steve Tyler, of the RNIB, said: "In future we expect the Victor
Trekker to offer more sophisticated benefits. Instead of simply
telling you what shop you are passing, it will also be able to tell
you what special offers might be on in that shop."
The RNIB helpline is 0845-766 9999 and the website, www.rnib.org.uk
NOW I DON'T HAVE TO ASK WHERE I AM
Lynn Holdsworth, 36, a web developer from Dagenham, Essex, who has
been blind from birth, tested the Victor Trekker for The Times on the
streets of Birmingham with her guide dog Kizzie:
Using the Victor Trekker is just awesome. It did not just give me
independence, it gave me total autonomy.
I was walking along streets I had never been along before and it was
telling me where I was going and what shops I was passing. It also
told me when intersections came up what they were.
It filled in all the information that I miss out on when I'm out with
my guide dog, Kizzie. Usually when I walk down the street, Kizzie
keeps me safe. But she can't tell me when I've reached the shop or
restaurant I'm going to. For that I have to ask a passer-by. It can
be a very frustrating experience.
It is just lovely to think that I could go out and not have to rely
on asking somebody else where I am. This is the kind of thing I've
been waiting for for years.
If I could take Kizzie with me, too, I could envisage going abroad
with a Victor Trekker and exploring other cities. I cannot think of
anything bad to say about it.
It's small, lightweight and discreet and the electronic voice is very
quiet, so it wouldn't draw the attention of passers-by. And it gives
very explicit instructions of how to get anywhere."
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