User involvement in the development of indoor navigation system for the visually impaired: A needs-finding study

Recent technological developments can provide technical assistance to support disabled people in their everyday tasks and improve their quality of life. This paper presents the results of preliminary experiments focused on the design of a software-based system for assisting visually impaired individuals Saudi Arabia. The proposed system will help these users in experiencing safer and yet independent indoor navigation in unfamiliar buildings. The results concluded that most of the visually impaired in Saudi Arabia depend mainly on a sighted person in their mobility and navigation activities. Further, the results highlighted the demand of this user group for a robust solution for an independent indoor navigation and mobility tool that is designed and implemented according to the user´s elicited difficulties and needs.