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The following article about the Blind Driver Challenge™ was published
yesterday on a Roanoke, Virginia news site. This is the first of several
important e-mails about the Rolex 24 At Daytona event that will be sent
in the next few days as Race Day (Saturday, January 29) approaches.
Please stay tuned.<br>
<br>
<font face="Garamond" size=5><b>Blind drivers test out vehicle at
VIR<br>
</b></font><font face="Garamond">Source: WSLS 10 (Roanoke,
Virginia)<br>
<br>
By <a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/staff/50988/">TARA BOZICK</a>
<br>
Published: January 19, 2011<br>
</font> <br><br>
<font face="Garamond">When
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/person/tags/anil-lewis/">
Anil Lewis</a> lost his sight, he sorely missed driving.<br><br>
Now, technology and innovation allow
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/person/tags/anil-lewis/">
him</a> to drive again, as he did at Virginia International Raceway on
Wednesday.<br><br>
“For me, driving again is a very awesome experience,” said
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/person/tags/anil-lewis/">
Lewis</a>,
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/position/tags/director-of-strategic-communications/">
director of strategic communications</a> for the
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/organization/tags/national-federation-of-the-blind/">
National Federation of the Blind</a>.<br><br>
He and the
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/organization/tags/national-federation-of-the-blind/">
NFB</a> can’t wait for tens of thousands of people to witness a blind
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/position/tags/driver/">
driver</a> demonstration as part of the pre-race activities of the Rolex
24 at
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/facility/tags/daytona-international-speedway/">
Daytona International Speedway</a> at 11:30 a.m. on Jan. 29. That’s what
the research team and drivers were practicing for at VIR this past
week.<br><br>
“Hardly anybody else in the world believes this is even possible,” said
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/person/tags/mark-riccobono/">
Mark Riccobono</a>,
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/position/tags/executive-director/">
executive director</a> of the NFB’s
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/facility/tags/jernigan-institute/">
Jernigan Institute</a>. “Because we believe it’s possible, we’re working
on it and found the brightest minds who believed in it and are working on
it to make it possible.”<br><br>
The vision that one day blind people would drive independently started
with
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/person/tags/marc-maurer/">
Marc Maurer</a>,
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/position/tags/president/">
president</a> of
the<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/organization/tags/national-federation-of-the-blind/">
NFB</a>. In 2004, the organization called on innovative technology as
part of its
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/position/tags/blind-driver/">
Blind Driver</a> Challenge.<br><br>
So far,
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/organization/tags/virginia-tech/">
Virginia Tech</a> with its Robotics and
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/company/tags/mechanisms-laboratory/">
Mechanisms Laboratory</a> is the only university to step up and take on
the challenge to develop
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/position/tags/non-visual-driver/">
non-visual driver</a> “interfaces” or tools, like gloves that send
vibrations to tell drivers how to steer.<br><br>
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/person/tags/mark-riccobono/">
Riccobono</a> hopes more universities will get involved now that one
hurdle was jumped developing the vehicle or “vehicle research platform”
that could integrate the non-visual interfaces and test out ideas on
how the car could communicate with blind drivers. That vehicle was
developed by
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/company/tags/torc/">
TORC</a>, a spin-off company
from<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/organization/tags/virginia-tech/">
Virginia Tech</a> specializing in unmanned vehicles and
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/company/tags/autonomous-systems/">
autonomous systems</a>.<br><br>
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/company/tags/torc/">
TORC</a> developed a ByWire XGV (drive-by-wire) vehicle using a
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/company/tags/ford/">
Ford</a> Escape Hybrid, said
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/company/tags/torc/">
TORC</a>
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/position/tags/software-engineer/">
software engineer</a>
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/person/tags/jesse-hurdus/">
Jesse Hurdus</a>. The collaborative team completed two prototypes
vehicles.<br><br>
The
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/organization/tags/virginia-tech/">
Virginia Tech</a> team, led by graduate student Paul D’Angio and
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/position/tags/adviser/">
adviser</a>
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/person/tags/dennis-hong/">
Dennis Hong</a> (director of the robotics lab), developed a SpeedStrip
and DriveGrip as interfaces.<br><br>
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/position/tags/driver/">A
driver</a> sits on the SpeedStrip to communicate through the back and
legs whether
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/position/tags/driver/">a
driver</a> needs to speed up or brake. The DriveGrip is a pair of gloves
that vibrates which direction to turn and also to what degree depending
on the finger. For instance, if the vibration is on the pinky finger,
that means
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/position/tags/driver/">
the driver</a> should make a sharp turn.<br><br>
D’Angio wanted to take on a project that would help society. The
“ear-to-ear” smiles of blind drivers taking the vehicle for a spin also
fuel his passion.<br><br>
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/person/tags/anil-lewis/">
Lewis</a> and
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/person/tags/mark-riccobono/">
Riccobono</a> hope these efforts can help blind people gain more access
to jobs or other activities. They believe driving is just the beginning
of the uses for this kind of technology.<br><br>
Most of all, they would like to shatter misconceptions people have about
the abilities of blind people.
The<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/organization/tags/national-federation-of-the-blind/">
NFB</a> continually pushes the horizons of independence and its 50,000
members are counting on
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/position/tags/blind-driver/">
the Blind Driver</a> Challenge.<br><br>
“We want to prove blind people can drive,”
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/person/tags/anil-lewis/">
Lewis</a> said. “Where it takes us from there, that’s the fun part of the
drive.”<br><br>
<b>Learn more<br><br>
</b>For more information about the Blind Drive Challenge and to get
updates on the Daytona demonstration, visit
<a href="http://www.blinddriverchallenge.org/" eudora="autourl">
www.blinddriverchallenge.org</a>.<br><br>
For more info on Virginia Tech’s Robotics and
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/company/tags/mechanisms-laboratory/">
Mechanisms Laboratory</a>, visit
<a href="http://www.romela.org/" eudora="autourl">www.romela.org</a>.<br>
<br>
For info on
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/company/tags/torc/">
TORC</a>, visit
<a href="http://www.torctech.com/" eudora="autourl">www.torctech.com</a>
.<br><br>
For more info on the
<a href="http://www2.godanriver.com/topics/types/organization/tags/national-federation-of-the-blind/">
National Federation of the Blind</a>, visit
<a href="http://www.nfb.org/" eudora="autourl">www.nfb.org</a>.<br>
</font>Link to article:<font face="Garamond">
</font>
<a href="http://www2.wsls.com/news/2011/jan/19/blind-drivers-test-out-vehicle-vir-ar-785883/">
<font face="Times New Roman, Times">
http://www2.wsls.com/news/2011/jan/19/blind-drivers-test-out-vehicle-vir-ar-785883/</a>
<br>
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