[Nfb-seniors] This article

[Barbara Shaidnagle]

anyone know about this cane?

story first then link:
By: Stacey Delikat, FOX 5 NY
<?body=http://www.fox5ny.com/news/new-smart-cane-vision-impaired?fbclid=IwAR0tUBgRyoMritv4d5EQTZwLVjPbbm2s-rF7VCWrtCkn6w5pfcdK9PI9j4Q>

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POSTED: JAN 15 2019 07:41PM EST

VIDEO POSTED: JAN 15 2019 07:42PM EST

UPDATED: JAN 15 2019 08:38PM EST

NEW YORK (FOX 5 NY) - Gus Chalkias has been visually impaired for over 20
years. Getting around New York City hasn't been easy.

"All the construction going on anywhere and all the noise it's really hard
to focus on environment," the Queens resident said. "So when I walk around
I'm often riddled with anxiety."

Chalkias is among a group of New Yorkers getting the chance to try out new
technology that could make navigating easier and safer for the blind and
visually impaired. It's called WeWalk <https://wewalk.io/>, the
first-of-its-kind smart cane.

Among its functions is overhead obstacle detection; it will vibrate when
the user is close to an object. Chalkias gave it a test run during an event
at Brooklyn Borough Hall on Tuesday.
[image: photo]
<http://www.fox5ny.com/news/new-smart-cane-vision-impaired?fbclid=IwAR0tUBgRyoMritv4d5EQTZwLVjPbbm2s-rF7VCWrtCkn6w5pfcdK9PI9j4Q#>

"I think it's really cool to be able to get some information ahead of time
without the cane making contact with something," he said.

WeWalk was developed in Turkey through a partnership between the
organization Young Guru Academy and the manufacturer Vestel.

"Our vision for the WeWalk is to make it the personal hub of the visually
impaired," said Kursat Ceylan, WeWalk's co-founder.

In addition to obstacle detection, the cane pairs with the user's
smartphone and syncs with apps like Google maps to give directions.

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams' office purchased a number of the
$395 WeWalk canes through a grant and will be testing them out through
partner organizations Helen Keller Services for the Blind and the
Lighthouse Guild, as well as with the MTA, which will test its functions in
their various transit systems.

"We think if it does what it is proposed to do, it will make people more
capable of walking around in a sighted world, more understanding of where
they are, more independent," said Joe Bruno, the president and CEO of Helen
Keller Services for the Blind.

The borough president's pilot program distributed eight WeWalk canes, which
will be tested over the course of three months.

The smart cane goes on sale to the public next month.


http://www.fox5ny.com/news/new-smart-cane-vision-impaired?fbclid=IwAR0tUBgRyoMritv4d5EQTZwLVjPbbm2s-rF7VCWrtCkn6w5pfcdK9PI9j4Q

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