WO2012056479A1

WO2012056479A1 - Supplementary guide kit, particularly for the blind and the partially sighted

Info

Publication number: WO2012056479A1
Application number: PCT/IT2010/000429
Authority: WO
Inventors: Roberto Molinari
Original assignee: Roberto Molinari
Priority date: 2010-10-25
Filing date: 2010-10-25
Publication date: 2012-05-03

Abstract

A supplementary guide kit, particularly for the blind and the partially sighted, which comprises at least one station (2) for emitting a signal and at least one portable device (3), such as a mobile phone, radio transceiver, audio/video player, and the like, which is capable of receiving the signal, at least within a predefined distance, and converting it into a message that can be understood by a blind or partially sighted person (A). The emission station (2) can be installed in proximity to a site which is preferably chosen from a public building, a place of sightseeing interest, a shop, a bar or restaurant, a road crossing, and the like. The signal and the message are constituted by a string of information about the site.

Description

SUPPLEMENTARY GUIDE KIT, PARTICULARLY FOR THE BLIND AND THE PARTIALLY SIGHTED

Technical Field

The present invention refers to a supplementary guide kit, particularly for the blind and the partially sighted.

Background Art

As is known, blind and partially sighted persons encounter many difficulties when they need to move about on foot on city streets, without resorting to assistance from another person to help them. Moreover, such difficulties are exacerbated if it is intended to reach a never-before-visited location.

In the first place, whatever the chosen destination, the impossibility of clearly viewing references and street names makes it very difficult to arrive simply and safely at the prearranged destination, and this becomes even harder when it is not a well-known destination which can be reached via^' a known path.

In addition, even if it is a well-known itinerary that is to be tackled, frequently it is necessary to deal with crossing a road, often a road with traffic, and this poses further problems which are hard to resolve, given the obvious difficulty, or even impossibility, of picking out approaching cars and/or the colour of the traffic signal.

To at least partially overcome these inconveniences, it is possible, as is known, to obtain help from a specially-trained dog: the dog can offer assistance to the partially sighted person by helping him or her to avoid obstacles of a various nature and to cross the road by reducing the risks to the minimum.

In order to make it easier to arrive at the intended destination, it is also possible to use electronic navigation systems, which can guide (for example, by means of speech guidance) a person towards the preset objective, showing him or her the shortest path on foot. Crossing a road can be made easier by the installation in proximity to pedestrian traffic signals of sound-emitting devices which tell the non- sighted person the status of the traffic signal, for example by advising him or her with an intermittent acoustic message at a frequency which is higher or lower respectively in the presence of the colour green or red of the traffic signal.

Such solutions are, however, not without drawbacks.

Indeed, a guide dog cannot be of assistance when dealing with an unknown itinerary. Moreover, it should be noted that often the availability of guide dogs, because of the long and complex training that they need to undergo, is reduced and therefore limited to persons who meet determined requirements and/or to persons who are able to meet the considerable expense of their upkeep.

On the other end, navigation systems, as well as offering no assistance in the event of needing to cross the. road, typically have a resolution that is not sufficiently high to guide a person right to the entrance of a premises such as a bar or restaurant (which a partially sighted person needs). Moreover, navigation systems are often afflicted with problems of poor reception in underground passageways, in city centres and/or near large buildings.

Lastly, it should be noted that the sound-emitting devices described above are often very invasive, causing annoyance to the people who live or work in the adjoining areas: even if installed, they are for this reason often disabled and so inevitably they are utterly ineffective.

Disclosure of the Invention

The aim of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned drawbacks, by providing a kit that is capable of assisting the partially sighted and the blind who wish to move about on foot along city streets and the like.

Within this aim, an object of the invention is to devise a kit that offers assistance to a blind or partially sighted person who wants to cross a road.

Another object of the invention is to devise a kit which provides exact and reliable guidance to a blind or partially sighted person, should he or she wish to go to a prearranged destination.

A further object of the invention is to devise a kit that facilitates pedestrian crossing of roads for blind and partially sighted persons which has a low cost and which is not invasive for the community.

A further object of the invention is to provide a kit that ensures a high level of reliability in operation.

A further object of the invention is to provide a kit that can be easily made from elements and materials that are easily sourced on the market.

A further object of the invention is to provide a kit that can be made at low cost and applied safely.

This aim as well as these objects are achieved by a supplementary guide kit, particularly for the blind and the partially sighted, characterised in that it comprises at least one station for emitting a signal and at least one portable device, such as a mobile telephone, radio transceiver, audio/video player and the like, which is adapted to receive the signal, at least within a predefined distance, and convert it to a message that can be understood by a blind or partially sighted person, said at least one emission station being capable of being installed in proximity to a site that is preferably chosen from a public building, a place of sightseeing interest, a shop, a bar or restaurant, a road crossing, and the like, said signal and said message being constituted by a string of information about the site.

Brief description of the drawings

Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become better apparent from the detailed description that follows of a preferred, but not exclusive, embodiment of the kit according to the invention, illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, wherein the sole figure schematically illustrates the operation of the kit according to the invention.

Ways of carrying out the invention

With reference to the figure, a kit according to the invention, generally indicated with the reference numeral 1 , offers, as will be shown hereinbelow, a useful aid for guiding individuals, in particular blind and partially sighted persons A, in order to enable them to move around and orientate themselves in a practical and easy manner on city streets (and elsewhere), even without resorting to assistance from other persons and/or guide dogs.

According to the invention, the kit 1 comprises at least one station 2 for emitting a signal and at least one portable device 3, such as a mobile phone, radio transceiver, audio/video player, and the like, which can be transported by the person A who wants to benefit from the guidance offered by the kit 1.

The portable device 3 is adapted to receive such signal, at least within a predefined distance, and convert it to a message that can be understood by a blind or partially sighted person A.

The emission station 2 can be installed in proximity to a site which is preferably chosen from a public building, a place of sightseeing interest, a shop, a bar or restaurant, a road crossing, and the like, while the signal, and consequently the message, is constituted by a string of information about the site (information which can be of a various nature, as will be seen below).

In particular, the kit 1 comprises a plurality of emission stations 2, which can be installed in respective sites, for the purpose of sending a plurality of signals which are constituted by corresponding strings of information about the sites.

According to an embodiment of important practical interest, cited for the purposes of non-limiting illustration of the application of the invention, the station 2 is a station for emitting electromagnetic radiation (for example, an antenna), and in this case it is the electromagnetic radiation which constitutes the signal. The portable device 3 is thus provided with a unit for receiving the waves and converting them into a message, which is preferably chosen from a sound message and a tactile message, which can be understood by a blind or partially sighted person A.

More specifically, there is the possibility that the station 2 is a station for emitting electromagnetic radiation of frequencies lower than 3 GHz, i.e. of frequencies which are comprised in the radio wave range.

According to a different possibility, the station 2 is a station for emitting electromagnetic radiation of frequencies comprised between 300 GHz and 428 THz, i.e. of frequencies which are comprised in the infrared range.

Alternatively, the station 2 can be a station for emitting electromagnetic radiation of frequencies comprised between 428 THz and 749 THz, i.e. of frequencies which are comprised in the visible light range.

Moreover, the possibility is not excluded of adopting stations 2 that are stations for emitting electromagnetic radiation of frequencies comprised between 749 THz and 30 PHz, i.e. of frequencies which are comprised in the ultraviolet range.

It should however be made clear that the scope of protection claimed herein comprises kits 1 which make use of different types of station 2, for emitting electromagnetic radiation according to different frequencies or different types of signal, as a function of the specific requirements.

In an embodiment of important practical interest, the station 2 is installed in proximity to at least one pedestrian road crossing and is operatively associated with a traffic signal, in order to send a signal which is constituted by a string of information about the status of the traffic signal (in particular the status of the pedestrian signal). In this way, the station 2 can communicate the condition of crossing being possible (green traffic light), , or of crossing not allowed (red traffic light), to the bearer of the portable device 3, as well as any additional information (the time remaining until the next change of status, for example).

More specifically, according to this embodiment, the station 2 is an antenna that emits electromagnetic radiation, which constitutes the signal, and is installed inside a traffic light, which in its turn faces the pedestrian crossing in order to regulate the pedestrian traffic.

According to another embodiment, the station 2 is installed in proximity to a site of interest, for the purposes of sending a signal which is constituted by a string of information about the site, preferably, but not exclusively, in order to facilitate the exact identification of the site.

Indeed, the station 2 can communicate the exact position of the site itself (a point of sightseeing interest, a restaurant, a shop, a public building etc.), so enabling the person A to identify it with greater precision than with satellite navigation systems and thus ensuring operation even where navigation systems often have problems with connection and reception.

The string can contain specific information about the environment immediately adjacent to the site, describing it and possibly providing paths or relevant reference points for the correct and accurate orientation of the person A, so that he or she can safely and exactly (without margin for error) identify the entrance to the site.

With particular reference to this embodiment (which is complementary to and not alternative to that explained previously), it appears evident that the possibility of installing a plurality of stations 2 at respective sites of interest (and/or simply in proximity to crossings, streets or squares) is of particular interest. Indeed, this choice makes it possible to emanate a network of signals, which can be received by the portable device 3, which makes it possible to precisely guide the person A across city streets, until the prearranged destination is reached.

According to a possible embodiment, the portable device 3 is a cellular phone, possibly of known type, which is provided with a unit for receiving the signal, and with software that is adapted to convert the signal into a message that can be sent to the person A, preferably by means of at least one of the hardware components which are typically comprised in such phone.

In this way, it seems clear that it is possible to provide kits 1 which include specially-made cellular phones, or to use cellular phones already on the market, for example by allowing the necessary software to be downloaded from the internet and making use of the speaker, display and/or vibrating apparatus which are typically comprised in such telephones in order to produce the message that can be understood by the blind or partially sighted person A.

According to a different embodiment, the portable device 3 is a radio transceiver, which can be installed in white canes for blind or partially sighted persons A. Again, the kit 1 according to the invention can make use of radio transceivers which can be installed in canes already on the market (including in ultrasonic white canes), as well as specially designed and built white canes which include radio transceivers.

It should be clear that the solutions shown above do not exhaust the possible embodiments of the portable device 3, and for example the use is provided of kits 1 which include audio/video players which include an element which is adapted to receive and convert the signal emitted by the station 2. Such players can be specially made, or they can be of known type (for example commercially-available players of MP3 files and/or of other audio/video files), possibly by making suitable software available.

The operation of the kit according to the invention is as follows.

The person A (blind or partially sighted) who wishes to move about on foot, in particular on city streets, can use the kit 1 according to the invention in order to avoid having to resort to the assistance offered by a guide dog or by another person, thus succeeding in reaching the prearranged destination and/or in safely crossing roads used by cars.

As noted, the emission station 2 can be arranged in proximity to a pedestrian crossing (and specifically it can be integrated into the traffic signal itself), in order to send a signal of a varied nature containing information about the status of the traffic signal, and therefore about the possibility of crossing.

The station 2 can in this way communicate (according to various methods), to the portable device 3 (the cellular phone, the white cane, a radio transceiver etc.), first of all the presence of a road and of a pedestrian crossing, and also the status of the traffic signal, thus ensuring the user can cross the road safely.

The station 2 can for example send a signal such as wireless signals, or Bluetooth signals, or infrared light signals (or other types of signal, according to the specific applicative requirements) and therefore the portable device 3 can at any moment intercept and receive the signals from all of the stations 2 arranged within at least a predefined distance.

The message sent by the portable device 3 to the person A can be of various different types. For example, it can be constituted by a sound message (a simple whistle or buzzer, but also a prerecorded audio message, possibly transmitted via headphones) or by a visual message (for partially sighted persons A, who can distinguish suitable images on the cellular phone but who would not be able to see the colour of the traffic signal), or yet again by a vibration of the portable device 3.

It should be noted that in a first method of operation, there exists the possibility that the station 2 emits the signal constantly, at least during daytime, in particular in proximity to crossings with particularly heavy traffic. Alternatively, it is possible to supply the kit 1 with a manually activated button (possibly identified by a special tactile marking), or the like, which can also be installed in proximity to the crossing in order to activate the emission of the signal only at the request of the person A, thus maintaining the station 2 in a wait condition until the button is pressed. A further string of information can preferably be associated with the wait condition, so that the person A can be made aware of the specific condition of the traffic signal.

The kit 1 can moreover be effectively used to guide the person A to a prearranged destination. In fact, by having a plurality of stations 2 arranged at streets, squares, crossings and places of interest, the person A can be constantly informed, with absolute precision, of his or her position and, by using software of the type used by satellite navigation systems in order to trace an itinerary towards a preset destination, it is possible to use the signals to accompany the person A on the journey.

This solution is of particular interest since, as is known, satellite navigation systems can have problems with reception in city centres (owing to the presence of large buildings which block the satellite signals) or in isolated locations (owing to coverage problems). On the contrary, the choice to use stations 2 for emitting signals such as radio waves, or which use wi-fi networks, ensures perfect and constant communication with the portable device 3. The station 2 moreover ensures a high level of precision, by enabling the correct identification of the prearranged destination (possibly by providing exact details about the immediately adjacent environment, or by indicating the presence of prioritised paths for blind or partially sighted persons A, provided with tactile references) within margins of tolerance that are much smaller than those normally provided with the use of satellite navigation systems.

Moreover, it is possible to send further information in the string carried by the signal and destined for the person A, such as the opening times of an office, or some information about the place of sightseeing interest towards which the person A is walking.

In practice it has been found that the kit according to the invention fully achieves the set aim, since, the use of a station for emitting a signal, which can be installed in proximity to a site, and of a portable device, which is adapted to receive the signal and convert it into a message that can be understood by a blind or partially sighted person, makes it possible to assist blind or partially sighted persons who wish to move about on foot on city streets and the like, by providing them with information about the site, such information being carried by the signal.

The invention thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications and variation, all of which are within the scope of the appended claims; in addition, all the details may be replaced by other technically equivalent elements.

In the embodiments illustrated, individual characteristics shown in relation to specific examples may in reality be interchanged with other, different characteristics, existing in other embodiments.

In addition, it should be noted that anything found to be already known during the patenting process is understood not to be claimed and to be the subject of a disclaimer.

In practice the materials employed, as well as the dimensions, may be any according to requirements and to the state of the art.

Where the technical features mentioned in any claim are followed by reference signs, those reference signs have been included for the sole purpose of increasing the intelligibility of the claims and accordingly, such reference signs do not have any limiting effect on the interpretation of each element identified by way of example by such reference signs.

Claims

1. A supplementary guide kit, particularly for the blind and the partially sighted, characterised in that it comprises at least one station (2) for emitting a signal and at least one portable device (3), such as a mobile telephone, radio transceiver, audio/video player and the like, which is adapted to receive the signal, at least within a predefined distance, and convert it into a message that can be understood by a blind or partially sighted person (A), said at least one emission station (2) being capable of being installed in proximity to a site that is preferably chosen from a public building, a place of sightseeing interest, a shop, a bar or restaurant, a road crossing, and the like, said signal and said message being constituted by a string of information about the site.

2. The supplementary kit according to claim 1 , characterised in that it comprises a plurality of said emission stations (2), which can be installed in respective sites, for sending a plurality of signals which are constituted by corresponding strings of information about said sites.

3. The supplementary kit according to claims 1 and 2, characterised in that said station (2) is a station for emitting electromagnetic radiation, which constitutes said signal, said portable device (3) being provided with a unit for receiving said waves and converting them into a message, preferably chosen from a sound message and a tactile message, which can be understood by a blind or partially sighted person (A).

4. The supplementary kit according to claim 3, characterised in that said station (2) is a station for emitting electromagnetic radiation of frequencies lower than 3 GHz, i.e. of frequencies which are comprised in the radio wave range.

5. The supplementary kit according to claim 3, characterised in that said station (2) is a station for emitting electromagnetic radiation of frequencies comprised between 300 GHz and 428 THz, i.e. of frequencies which are comprised in the infrared range.

6. The supplementary kit according to claim 3, characterised in that said station (2) is a station for emitting electromagnetic radiation of frequencies comprised between 428 THz and 749 THz, i.e. of frequencies which are comprised in the visible light range.

7. The supplementary kit according to claim 3, characterised in that said station (2) is a station for emitting electromagnetic radiation of frequencies comprised between 749 THz and 30 PHz, i.e. of frequencies which are comprised in the ultraviolet range.

8. The supplementary kit according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterised in that said station (2), which is installed in proximity to at least one pedestrian road crossing, is operatively associated with a traffic signal, for the sending of a signal which is constituted by a string of information about the status of the traffic signal.

9. The supplementary kit according to claim 8, characterised in that said station (2) is an antenna that emits electromagnetic radiation, which constitutes said signal, said antenna being installed inside a traffic light, which in its turn faces the pedestrian crossing in order to regulate the pedestrian traffic.

10. The supplementary kit according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterised in that said station (2) is installed in proximity to a site of interest, for the sending of a signal which is constituted by a string of information about said site, preferably for the exact identification of said site.

1 1. The supplementary kit according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterised in that said portable device (3) is a cellular phone, possibly of known type, which is provided with a unit for receiving said signal, and with software that is adapted to convert the signal to a message that can be sent to the person (A), preferably by means of at least one of the hardware components which are typically comprised in said phone.

12. The supplementary kit according to one or more of the claims

11.11.2010 2012/056479 PCT/IT2010/000429

13

from 1 to 10, characterised in that said portable device (3) is a radio transceiver, which can be installed in a white cane for the blind and the partially sighted.