Scientists have developed glasses that give real-time instructions to help blind people navigate without assistance dogs, canes, or other humans.
Researchers at Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China have mounted a tiny computer with artificial intelligence (AI) software on Google’s smart glasses prototype that was discontinued in 2023.
The AI algorithms allow the glasses to survey the environment and send signals as the user approaches an obstacle or object.
"The camera can capture the image, the information in front. This image information can then be sent to a small computer,” Leilei Gu, a researcher at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, said.
"For example, an image of a chair tells me where the chair is, then I move to the chair, I make one step, then actually the information changes because my position has changed," he said, adding that it also updates new information about where the chair is so that step by step the user can approach the target safety.
The attached computer is as small as a credit card, allowing the user to roam around without the technology being too obtrusive.
The researchers also developed 'synthetic skin', a material with built-in sensors that alert when objects are nearby.
When a user comes close to an obstacle, a prompt is sent through bone conduction, a way of transmitting sound to the inner ear by sending vibrations through the bones of the skull.
Unlike air conduction, which goes through the air via the eardrums, this tech allows the listener to hear even if the ear canal is blocked.
The stretchable synthetic skin is 0.1 to 0.2 mm thick using a polymer called PDMS, but it's not connected to the AI software.
"We only need to know on the side whether there's an obstacle or not, we don't care about whether it's connected or not, it's just to make sure it's safe," Gu explained.
Some 18 people in China have taken part in a study.
'Massive step forward'
In Europe, an estimated number of over 30 million people are partially sighted or blind, according to the European Blind Union. An average of 1 in 30 Europeans experiences sight loss.
The developers say current devices are a barrier to blind people using them, and they wanted to create a system where the user is indistinguishable from fully sighted people.
The existing options are costly, with the costs of training a guide dog up to €60,000 according to insiders in the wearable medical device industry.
"Many visually impaired people want to remain as independent as possible," said Chris Lewis, an independent telecoms and accessibility analyst.
"Ultimately, the ability of a camera mounted on glasses to feed information to you, via both your ears and by haptic feedback, is just a massive step forward," Lewis added.
He says the array of different devices using AI means the cost is becoming less prohibitive and they're being adapted for a larger market, including people with disabilities.
The research team behind the AI glasses hopes that in the future, they can develop a smaller camera that can even be put on contact lenses.
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