[Nfbc-info] Fwd: Technology In My Shoe ?

[Brian Buhrow]

	I don't think I want to wear a shoe that can call for an ambulance if
I step on it wrong.  That feature has got to go!
	I wonder how robust the technology is if I tramp  through a mud
puddle, walk in the rain, scuff the shoe against a curb, sit at my desk and
tap the shoe against the footrest, or, step in a pile of dog do?  Since the
shoe is considered to be quite dirty in many cultures--tossing a shoe at
someone is considered the ultimate insult as many may remember from the
Bush Jr. shoe tossing incident--I have to wonder what the cultural
implications of having the blind wear a smart shoe are?  I'm troubled by
the line, "since the shoe is ultimately guiding the blind person it's a
matter of trusting the shoe".  I'm ok with getting ansilary data from the
shoe, but the shoe guiding me?  No!   I think it's an interesting concept, but
the premise from which it is being developed seems, well, wrong.  It could
be a language barrier, but, I doubt it.
-Brian

On Oct 7, 10:37pm, "Rob Kaiser" wrote:
} Subject: Re: [Nfbc-info] Fwd: Technology In My Shoe ?
} I wonder what this will cost.
} 
} 
} 
} -----Original Message----- 
} From: Melissa
} Sent: Monday, October 07, 2013 10:26 PM
} To: Nfbc-info at nfbnet.org
} Subject: [Nfbc-info] Fwd: Technology In My Shoe ?
} 
} Thoughts on this?
} >
} >
} > A haunting black-and-white video screened during the TED Fellows talks
} > depicted people speaking into a device and then walking - at first
} > taking halting steps, then more confident strides. As the video unfolds,
} > the camera zooms in on the faces of the walkers - revealing that they
} > are blind.
} >
} > With his team, TED Senior Fellow Anthony Vipin Das, an eye surgeon, has
} > been developing haptic shoes that use vibration and GPS technology to
} > guide the blind. This innovation - which could radically change the
} > lives of the vision-impaired - has drawn the interest of the United
} > States Department of Defense, which has recently shortlisted the project
} > for a $2 million research grant. Anthony tells us the story behind the
} > shoe.
} > Tell us about the haptic shoe.
} >
} > The shoe is called Le Chal, which means "take me there" in Hindi. My
} > team, Anirudh Sharma and Krispian Lawrence and I, are working on a
} > haptic shoe that uses GPS to guide the blind. The most difficult
} > problems that the blind usually face when they navigate is orientation
} > and direction, as well as obstacle detection. The shoe is in its initial
} > phase of testing: We've crafted the technology down to an insole that
} > can fit into any shoe and is not limited by the shape of the footwear,
} > and it vibrates to guide the user. It's so intuitive that if I tap on
} > your right shoulder, you will turn to your right; if I tap on your left
} > shoulder, you turn to your left.
} > The shoe basically guides the user on the foot on which he's supposed to
} > take a turn. This is for direction. The shoe also keeps vibrating if
} > you're not oriented in the direction of your initial path, and will stop
} > vibrating when you're headed in the right direction. It basically brings
} > the wearer back on track as we check orientation at regular intervals.
} > Currently I'm conducting the first clinical study at LV Prasad Eye
} > Institute in Hyderabad, India. It's very encouraging to see the kind of
} > response we've had from wearers. They were so moved because it was
} > probably the very first time that they had the sense of independence to
} > move confidently - that the shoe was talking to them, telling them where
} > to go and what to do.
} > How do you tell the shoe where you want to go?
} >
} > It uses GPS tracking, and we've put in smart taps: gestures that the
} > shoe can learn. You tap twice, and it'll take you home. If you lift your
} > heel for five seconds, the shoe might understand, "This is one of my
} > favorite locations." And not just that. If a shoe detects a fall, it can
} > automatically call an emergency number. Moving forward, we want to try
} > to decrease the dependency on the phone and the network to a great
} > extent. We hope to crowdsource maps and build up enough data to store on
} > the shoe itself.
} > The second phase we are working on is obstacle detection. India has got
} > such a varied terrain. The shoe can detect immediate obstacles like
} > stones, potholes, steps. It's not a replacement for the cane, but it's
} > an additive benefit for a visually impaired person to offer a sense of
} > direction and orientation.
} > Are you still in the development stage?
} >
} > The insole is already done. We are currently testing it. I'm using
} > simple and complex paths - simple paths like a square, rectangle,
} > triangle and a circle, and complex paths include a zigzag or a random
} > path. Then we are going to step it up with navigation into a
} > neighborhood. From there we'll develop navigation to distant locations,
} > including the use of public transportation. It will be a stepwise study
} > that we'll finish over the middle of this year, then go in for
} > manufacturing the product.
} > You're an eye doctor. How did you get involved in this?
} >
} > I'm an eye surgeon who loves to step out of my box and try to see others
} > who are working in similar areas of technology that are helpful for my
} > patients. So Anirudh Sharma and I, we're on the same TR35 list of India
} > in 2012. I said, "Dude, I think we can be doing stuff with the shoe and
} > my patients. Let's see how we can refine it." There was already an
} > initial prototype when he presented last year at EmTech in Bangalore.
} > Anirudh teamed up with one of his friends, Krispian Lawrence of Ducere
} > Technologies in Hyderabad, who is leading the development and logistics
} > to get this into the market. We just formed a really cool team, and
} > started working on the shoe, started testing it on our patients and
} > refining the model further and further. Finally we've come to a stage
} > where my patients are walking and building a bond with the shoe.
} > Are these patients comfortable with the shoe?
} >
} > Yes, it's totally unobtrusive. And more importantly, we are working on
} > developing the first vibration language in the world for the Haptic
} > Shoe. We're looking at standardizing the vibration, like Braille, which
} > is multilingual. But even more crucial than the technology, the shoe is
} > basically talking to the walker. How they can trust the shoe? So that's
} > an angle that we are looking at. Because at the end of the day, it's the
} > shoe that's guiding you to the destination. We're trying to build that
} > bond between the walker and the sole.
} > Building a bond with the sole. That's good. I'm going to use that.
} >
} >
} >
} >
} 
} _______________________________________________
} Nfbc-info mailing list
} Nfbc-info at nfbnet.org
} http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbc-info_nfbnet.org
} To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
} Nfbc-info:
} http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbc-info_nfbnet.org/rcubfank%40sbcglobal.net 
} 
} 
} _______________________________________________
} Nfbc-info mailing list
} Nfbc-info at nfbnet.org
} http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbc-info_nfbnet.org
} To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for Nfbc-info:
} http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbc-info_nfbnet.org/buhrow%40lothlorien.nfbcal.org
>-- End of excerpt from "Rob Kaiser"