[NABS-L] Compass

Fri Feb 11 13:17:51 UTC 2022

Greetings Bhavya,

This is Maurice Peret and I have some experience teaching cane travel as well as with trying out various apps to accomplish usually very immediate and direct objectives such as you've described on your campus. I am also familiar with the architectural design trend of many campuses I have visited over the years. One idea might be to consider a beacon driven app such as Microsoft SoundScape. You can set an address marker to places you frequently travel and activate a directional beacon towards your destination. You can customize the app to say as little or as much as you like which is a feature I especially appreciate. Sometimes I don't want nor need too extensive extraneous environmental information, I just want to know if I am heading in the right direction while attending to what's happening around me. Another nice thing about this app is that the beacon sound responds in stereo according to your physical trajectory. You can use the app hands free via use of bone conducting headset which minimizes interference with environmental cues. BlindSquare is another multifunctional navigational app that costs something around $30 US and provides intermittent distance and directional info, as well as announcing points of interest. Those are a couple of ideas off the top of my head for whatever they may be worth to you.

If I can be of further assistance, please feel at liberty to contact me.

Best,

Maurice Peret, NOMCT
Coordinator of Career Mentoring & Employment Programs
200 East Wells Street, Baltimore, MD 21230
410-659-9314, extension 2350| MPeret at nfb.org<mailto:MPeret at nfb.org>
Mobile|804-928-4015

[National Federation of the Blind]<https://nfb.org/>

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-----Original Message-----
From: NABS-L <nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Bhavya shah via NABS-L
Sent: Friday, February 11, 2022 6:31 AM
To: nabs-l at nfbnet.org
Cc: Bhavya shah <bhavya.shah125 at gmail.com>
Subject: [NABS-L] Compass

Dear all,

I am a non-advanced cane traveller and my campus has a lot of curves and diagonals which  can throw off my direction. As such, I have found my phone's compass app to be indispensable, giving me confidence when the direction I think I am facing matches its reading and helping me correct when I am off. However, this is somewhat cumbersome to do. I have a cane in my hand, and I need to stop, whip out my iPhone on which the compass app is open, touch the correct part of the screen to hear my direction, and then put it back in my pocket. This is a simple set of steps, but considering that I am on-the-go and am needing to repeatedly take my phone out of my pocket and bring it somewhat close to my ear so as to hear VoiceOver announce the cardinal direction (and the repetitive instruction to hold my phone flat), it is doable but non-ideal. I was wondering if you have found alternative SOPs to use a compass. I am thinking of the following ideas:

* A simple physical compass that is tactually accessible

* Mapping a gesture or button combination on iOS to announcement of cardinal directions

I would truly appreciate any recommendations for products, strategies, or otherwise. Hope y'all have a lovely weekend!

Best Regards,

Bhavya Shah

Stanford University | Class of 2024

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bhavyashah125

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