Improving obstacle detection by redesign of walking canes for blind persons

Ergonomics
R SchellingerhoutG P Van Galen

Abstract

This paper describes an experiment in which the performance of cane walkers with the traditional straight long cane and a redesigned cane, the curved cane, was compared. The curved cane has a curve where the tip touches the ground. Participants were 18 experienced cane walkers who were totally blind. The aspects of cane walking that were investigated included obstacle detection, drop-off (slope) detection and walking speed. The performance with both canes was investigated in two different ways: (1) by means of constructed courses in which objective measures of cane walking were derived; and (2) by means of more qualitative measures based on the participants' experiences with the curved cane during a 3-week try-out period. Results showed that obstacle-detection was significantly better with the curved cane, whereas drop-off detection and walking speed were comparable for the two canes. The participants' experiences mirrored these results.

References

Jun 1, 1986·Ergonomics·D D Clark-CarterC I Howarth

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Citations

Feb 15, 2011·Research in Developmental Disabilities·J SchurinkF N Boonstra
Nov 19, 2013·Applied Ergonomics·Cheng-Lung LeeShih-Yi Lu
Jul 30, 2005·Journal of Clinical Neuroscience : Official Journal of the Neurosurgical Society of Australasia·Vivek ChowdhuryMinas T Coroneo
Dec 26, 2017·The British Journal of Visual Impairment·Dae Shik KimKoorosh Naghshineh
Feb 7, 2014·Proceedings. Biological Sciences·Daniel B Zurek, Cole Gilbert

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