Designing of an infra-red optocoupler based mobility aid for the blinds

In the last decade, there has been an exponential increase in the research being carried out on wearable devices. The research on wearable devices still in its nascent stages and hence there are not many commercial devices available for improving the lifestyle of the differently-abled persons. Hence, in this study, we have made an attempt to device a wearable electronic travelling aid for the blinds using IR based distance monitoring sensors. The device has been designed to generate audio signals to alarm the user about the presence of an obstacle. The user can manipulate the device to have information about the aerial obstacles. 10 volunteers were trained on the device who reported that the device was user-friendly.