[nagdu] GPS Training

d m gina dmgina at samobile.net
Mon Feb 7 04:43:14 UTC 2011


I hope the folks catch on as well as I did, learning how to put in addresses.
Now will instructors let folks who have the breeze use it in training?
Especially getting a new dog?
I think that would be so cool if they did. I know it would be.
I know I would ask.

Original message:
> Lisa,



> That was a great explanation of our Trekker Breeze training. We've modified
> it slightly for the recent upgrades and now will include evening lectures on
> how to put in addresses from the device and your computer.



> We work in Port Jefferson, Long Island for much of the training now and have
> one fun exercise that really does show you where your trust should lie.



> There is a very nice pier you can walk along that juts out into the sound.
> We have you create a landmark on shore then walk out on the pier. The
> walkway takes a couple bends though. Then we have you use the Breeze to
> navigate back to that landmark. Well, since you are in an open area off the
> street grid, the Breeze gives you directions by clock face angles. If you
> were to follow them, you'd be very wet, very quickly. <grin>



> Our motto during the training is Dog, Gut, Trekker, to describe the order in
> which you should trust incoming info as you travel.



> When we set up the training, we decided to use other blind people to do the
> teaching of the classroom and some street work with guide dog instructors
> and volunteers assisting on the streets to observe dog behavior and safety
> issues.



> I can't wait to get our next series of classes going in April. I love
> training folks with the device.



> Jenine Stanley

> jeninems at wowway.com



> From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
> Of Lisa belville
> Sent: Sunday, February 06, 2011 7:28 PM
> To: national guide dog
> Subject: [nagdu] GPS Training



> Okay, I'll try to combine all of the Breeze questions into one hopefully not
> so long missive.  I was in one of the several pilot classes the GDF
> conducted last year, so my info may be out of date due to their modifying
> the class.  Also, the Breeze has had several firmware updates over the past
> year, so they'll need to incorporate that into the current training.

> Jenine Stanley works for the GDF and so can probably answer any questions
> more thoroughly.

> First, the Breeze training at the GDF is only open to GDF grads.  Grads have
> to have been working with their dog for at least six months and have gelled
> as a team.

> You fill out an application giving specifics about where you live, what
> kinds of environments you live in and if you live close to geographical
> features like mountains, large lakes, etc..  This might sound trivial, but
> features like this can cause the GPS to not work accurately or not at
> all,depending on the circumstance.

> They also ask about your hearing and how fast you can walk because these can
> also affect working with a GPS.

> The training is just over two days.  The class begins on a Monday evening
> and technically ends on a Wednesday evening, but most people didn't actually
> leave the foundation until the next morning.

> We got the manual and other Breeze documentation Emailed a week or so before
> the class so we could read the manual and familiarize ourselves with
> concepts, terminology, etc.  This really didn't help me much as far as
> orientation to the keypad because I'm the kind of person who needs to feel
> what's being described as it's being described.

> They give out the units the evening everyone arrives and spend time with
> orientation to the buttons and how to adjust the volume, voice rate and
> pitch, etc.  This is so you can reliably find buttons while walking with the
> dog or find a voice rate and volume that's comfortable for you so you won't
> have to fiddle with it during training.

> There are two blind instructors and a sighted person to drive the van and
> give additional information about surroundings, etc..  One blind instructor
> walks with us and explains why the Breeze says what it does when it does.
> The other one hangs out in the van with the other Breeze students and does
> one on one demonstrations and explanations if anyone wants it.

> The next day we start by doing different routes in different areas.
> Smithtown and the surrounding area is fairly diverse so people get a chance
> to see how it operates while walking down a busy sidewalk full of overhangs,
> trees and glass store fronts. We cross all kinds of intersections with very
> rounded curbs, diagonal crossings, T intersections, etc.  The Breeze might
> give some inaccurate information about what street you're on if the curb is
> really rounded, so that's why the various street crossings are included.

> We go through the process of making landmarks, creating routes to landmarks,
> using routes in a vehicle or on foot, backtracking, making landmarks while
> using the Breeze when it's off the street grid and relying only on as the
> crow flies directions, and using those to find off the grid landmarks.

> They also explain a bit of how the GPS works and how using GPS for someone
> with no vision who is walking is a bit different than how a GPS in a car
> operates.  IMO, this is one of the most important parts of the training
> because we learn the limitations of the GPS and how to compensate for not
> having the ability to glance around and take in surroundings to verify what
> the GPS is or isn't telling you.

> Judging by some of the questions I've seen on the various technology list,
> not knowing how the GPS works, combined with not being familiar with the
> local area can be very frustrating for people, especially if they got the
> GPS under the impression it would guide them right to a door with step by
> step directions.  Yes, the Breeze is as accurate as a mainstream GPS, but
> mainstream GPSs don't get sighted people to the door of their houses, but
> can be several feet off even though the Breeze alerts them that they're at
> the landmark.  The Breeze uses the same maps and GPS features as mainstream
> products,; there are just more specific tools to help blind people.  For
> example, it will not always work if you're in a city with tall buildings
> because it was originally designed to work using a vehicle that was,
> presumably on a road with clear access to the sky.  The Buildings block the
> signal so you may not always get an accurate estimate of where you're going
> unless you move closer to the street.  It will not work reliably inside most
> buildings.  It can't get you precisely to a door, especially if that door is
> under a roof because the signal is blocked or if the signal is bouncing off
> reflective objects like windows or water.  This is why You need to know what
> the unit is telling you, along with the information you're getting from your
> dog and your own senses in order to know if you're getting the correct
> information from the GPS., they wanted us to know how the unit acted with
> these situations so we knew when to rely on the unit and when not to.  It
> was emphasized several times that the GPS, just like the dog, is another
> tool in the tool box and that all of them operate independently of each
> other.

> It's like any other technology.  Some people are very tech savvy and can
> grasp new concepts and incorporate them into how they're already working
> while some can't.  Toni did a good job of explaining how the GPS and the dog
> work together and how this does take some practice.  Some people may not
> grasp this as quickly, or realize that if they stop long enough they could
> lose their current GPS fix.  Some people may only take the time to learn the
> basics of their equipment and either not feel comfortable or just put off
> using the advanced functions.

> The GDF wants people to get the full benefit of the Breeze and how it can
> enhance the dog/human partnership.  They pack a lot into the two day
> training so that we can hit the ground running back home.

> Lisa



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