[NFBofSC] Microsoft Backs Development of Smart Cane for Visually Impaired

Fri Jan 8 16:47:50 UTC 2021

Then you would continue on your way using the smart cane as a regular cane. The smart cane does not replace your regular cane this is another tool for us to use. You still must have good mobility skills no matter what you are using to assist you with your mobility. The same goes if you are using a GPS on your phone and your battery dies, what do you do then. You must still have an idea on how to maneuver around. 

Just like there are different screen readers, accessible phones, ETC. The smart cane is another device for people to use if they choose to. All of us have differing levels of mobility skills, confidence and  self esteem with our skill set. If the smart cane assist them and they can afford it, good for them. We all need assistance at some point in our lives. 

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From: NFBofSC <nfbofsc-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Sunshine Stylez via NFBofSC
Sent: Friday, January 8, 2021 11:37 AM
To: NFB of South Carolina Mailing List <nfbofsc at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Sunshine Stylez <sunshinestyles01 at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [NFBofSC] Microsoft Backs Development of Smart Cane for Visually Impaired

A cane is an assistive device, 

 I’m quite interested to know how a “Smart” cane will assist us with walking and if the battery dies in the middle of us using it then what? 

On Fri, Jan 8, 2021 at 11:28 AM Mike and Jean via NFBofSC <nfbofsc at nfbnet.org <mailto:nfbofsc at nfbnet.org> > wrote:

If this cane is such a bad idea, why are blind people using the trecker and the i-phone maps?  Why are they using cnia for reading and other such apps.  Just because this cane might not be a good idea for some, there is no reason to critisize and say that it should not go forward.  I personally hope that it is developed and comes to the USA very soon.  i would be very interested in it.  i am an independent blind person and a proud member of the nfb, however, i an open to new ideas and i don’t cut down evything that i personally would not use.  thanks steve for sharing this very informative article.  mike

From: NFBofSC <nfbofsc-bounces at nfbnet.org <mailto:nfbofsc-bounces at nfbnet.org> > On Behalf Of Sunshine Stylez via NFBofSC
Sent: Friday, January 8, 2021 9:37 AM
To: NFB of South Carolina Mailing List <nfbofsc at nfbnet.org <mailto:nfbofsc at nfbnet.org> >
Cc: Sunshine Stylez <sunshinestyles01 at gmail.com <mailto:sunshinestyles01 at gmail.com> >
Subject: Re: [NFBofSC] Microsoft Backs Development of Smart Cane for Visually Impaired

This is Ludicrous!!!!!!! How smart can a cane be without the user? Unless the cane can walk for us it is not smart at all. Just another waste of time every and money on training for something that will cause us issues.

On Fri, Jan 8, 2021, 9:22 AM DAVID via NFBofSC <nfbofsc at nfbnet.org <mailto:nfbofsc at nfbnet.org> > wrote:

To be frankly honest this is completely disgusting. This is another SIGHTED person or group THINKING they know what’s best for people that are blind. Every tiek I heard the word “stick” to describe our canes also made me irate. Another point is that our CANES do take us places and DO provide A LOT of information. They tell us when ground surfaces have changed from hardwood floors to carpet to concrete to asphalt. As well as letting us know when we are in a wide open area with echos. Also our canes send vibrations up the STRAIGHT cane to our hands. Let’s us know the difference between a driveway entrance and a side street, allows us to find curbs and doors and door handles. 

This group making this device is a complete shame and another company looking to exploit people that are blind by getting them to spend $600 on a cane which is ridiculous. It’s bad enough that Braille displays cost a bloody fortune on top of screen reading software. You can get yourself different types of straight canes such as NFB cane, a Bob Riley or  a Commander cane, ALL of which cost between 20 to 40 dollars. 

Someone that comes form an NFB training center LCB (Louisiana Center for the Blind) I find this horrible and it’s making people that are blind to still be relying on others or technology that can fail or glitch and then they will have no ability to get around on own with out this crazy expensive cane. This in my opinion is the absolute worst thing ever and I can already figure the areas this system will NOT work and in the end will be a bigger problem then a helper. 

WE as people that are blind truly need to STAND UP and teach these so called “helpful” people or groups or companies that they should first come to us to ask us if this is even something we want or need. 

David Rebocho 

Keep Smiling 

Keep Living 

On Jan 8, 2021, at 08:46, Mike and Jean via NFBofSC <nfbofsc at nfbnet.org <mailto:nfbofsc at nfbnet.org> > wrote:

This is exciting.  Thanks for sharing it.  i would love to be one of the test dummies on this one.  mike

From: NFBofSC <nfbofsc-bounces at nfbnet.org <mailto:nfbofsc-bounces at nfbnet.org> > On Behalf Of Steve Cook via NFBofSC
Sent: Friday, January 8, 2021 6:00 AM
To: nfbofsc at nfbnet.org <mailto:nfbofsc at nfbnet.org> 
Cc: Steve Cook <cookcafe at sc.rr.com <mailto:cookcafe at sc.rr.com> >
Subject: [NFBofSC] Microsoft Backs Development of Smart Cane for Visually Impaired

Visually impaired accessible technology - BingNews - Wednesday, January 6, 2021 at 8:03 AM

Microsoft Backs Development of Smart Cane for Visually Impaired

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(Bloomberg) -- Jean Marc Feghali has Leber’s Congenital Amaurosis, a disease that reduces his peripheral vision and renders him effectively blind at night. But the intelligent walking cane he’s helping to develop has been life-changing, he says. It’s also won support from Microsoft Corp.

“We’ve come to a world where we talk about autonomous vehicles and yet we’re still sending visually impaired people out with what is essentially a stick,” Feghali said. “It doesn’t take you anywhere. It doesn’t take you to a coffee shop. It doesn’t help you seek employment. It’s just a stick.”

London-based startup WeWalk -- where Feghali, 24, is head of research and development -- wants to change that with its $599 “smart cane.” It pairs with smartphones and uses ultrasonic object detection to spot hazards such as steps and parked cars, as well as objects at waist height like tree branches.

It also features wireless networking, turn-by-turn GPS navigation, taxi-booking and public transit directions in dozens of cities. The device even has a voice assistant. Feghali, who’s also working on a doctorate in philosophy at Imperial College, said he believes it’s a long-overdue answer to a problem that affects millions of people worldwide.

The U.K.’s Royal National Institute of Blind People says more than 2 million people live with sight loss in Britain, of which about 350,000 were registered as either blind or partially sighted as of 2017. The American Foundation for the Blind says more than 32 million American adults reported experiencing vision loss in 2018.

Both organizations campaign for the use of technology to make workplaces, schools and transport networks more accessible to individuals with little or no sight. Tech firms such as Apple Inc., Alphabet Inc.’s Google and Amazon.com Inc. also promote accessibility features on products like the Apple Watch and virtual assistants such as Alexa for users with sight loss.

Feghali said the company’s goal is to create a product that blends key elements of devices like the FitBit or Apple Watch with hardware that’s specifically built for people with limited or no vision.

A number of WeWalk’s 20 employees are visually impaired, including Feghali and Co-Founder Kursat Ceylan. “I see through a small tunnel, which is darker than typical sight,” Feghali said. “It’s quite sharp, but narrow, and at night it’s basically complete blindness.”

WeWalk secured initial financing via a crowdfunding campaign in 2018 and joined Microsoft’s AI for Accessibility program at the end of 2020. Feghali said he and his colleagues were particularly interested in using the U.S. tech company’s Azure cloud platform for analyzing movement data of individuals collected by its cane.

“We can detect when they might be having a bad journey, or we see anomalous mobility patterns,” he said. “So apart from the personal benefit to the visually impaired person, where you can actually have a way to diagnose your own mobility characteristics, we can now feed back to health-care professionals and mobility trainers who work with visually impaired people.”

But at close to $600, the product is about ten times more expensive than a conventional white cane. It also requires a smartphone to make the most of its features and the company’s free mobile app, which could put it out of reach for many people.

Feghali said WeWalk is working with governments, charities, health-care providers and more recently at least one U.K. mobile-phone network to create subsidized packages to help users afford the canes, similar to how the costs of guide dogs are often reduced.

“The standard white cane really is fantastic, but it’s kind of from the Stone Age,” he said.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com <https://www.bloomberg.com> 

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