Comparing Tactile to Auditory Guidance for Blind Individuals

Abstract

The ability to travel independently is crucial to an individual's quality of life but compromised by visual impairment. Several navigational aids have been developed for blind people to address this limitation. These devices typically employ auditory instructions to guide users to desired waypoints. Unfortunately, auditory instructions may interfere with users' awareness of environmental sounds that signal dangers or provide cues for spatial orientation. Accordingly, there is a need to explore the use of non-auditory modalities to convey information for safe and independent travel. Here, we explored the efficacy of a tactile navigational aid that provides turn signals via vibrations on a hip-worn belt. We compared the performance of 12 blind participants as they navigated a series of paths under the direction of the tactile belt or conventional auditory turn commands; furthermore, we assessed the effect of repeated testing, both in the presence and absence of simulated street sounds. A computer-controlled system triggered each turn command, measured participants' time-to-path-completion, and detected major navigational errors. When participants navigated in a silent environment, they performed somewhat worse with the tactile belt than the auditory device, taking longer to complete each trial and committing more errors. When participants navigated in the presence of simulated street noises, the difference in completion time between auditory and tactile navigation diminished. These results suggest that tactile navigation holds promise as an effective method in everyday environments characterized by ambient noise such as street sounds.

Comparing Performance and Preference of Visually Impaired Individuals in Object Localization: Tactile, Verbal, and Sonification Cueing Modalities

“…Another concern is the attachment of the vibration motors on the body, which might have negatively affected the participants' ability to accurately interpret the cues. It is possible that adjustments in the placement of the motors could potentially enhance the effectiveness of vibration cues, for example, placing them in different locations on the body (on different limbs or a hip-worn belt, as in [12]). In summary, the utilization of vibration-based cueing exhibits both advantageous and disadvantageous aspects.…”

“…For instance, in the study by Bharadwaj et al. [12], a waist-worn vibratory interface was compared against conventional auditory directives, revealing that tactile cues are particularly effective in noisy environments. Delogu et al [13] extended this understanding by employing sonification based on geographical locations, highlighting that spatial representation is not confined to the visual modality.…”

HaptiSole: Wearable Haptic System in Vibrotactile Guidance Shoes for Visually Impaired Wayfinding

“…In order to understand the effect of surrounding noise in the achievement of the journey, the study [38] explored a prototype using a tactile navigational aid that provides turn signals using vibrations on a hip-worn belt. 12 blind users participated in the evaluation of this belt as they navigated through a series of paths under the direction of the tactile belt or conventional auditory turn commands.…”

Review: How Can Intelligent Robots and Smart Mechatronic Modules Facilitate Remote Assessment, Assistance, and Rehabilitation for Isolated Adults With Neuro-Musculoskeletal Conditions?

“…armbands) and may provide auditory, vibrotactile, or visual cues for the patients. One example of such a systems are wearable vibrotactile suits for helping individuals with degraded vision and sensory awareness, so they can navigate safely in daily environments while protecting them when encountering unexpected contacts, which may result in falls ( Bharadwaj et al (2019) ). Another example is technologies that provide cues to the user regarding their posture during walking to maintain a safer balance ( Viseux et al (2019) ).…”