Directing Characteristics of Infra-red Handheld Device toward Target by Persons with Visual Impairment

Guiding and wayfinding systems utilizing infra-red technology have been applied to the intersection in Japan. When user wants to cross the roads, he/she judges the direction to go by utilizing the directivity of infrared beam using a hand-held terminal. The points to check whether the walking route to the opposite side of the crosswalk will be good or not are: (1) The relation between the direction of the terminal held by user and the direction of human sense of the user is well coordinated or not. (2) How to be trained/learned for coordinating his/her body with the information of arm's direction. This paper describes the research of human characteristics of direction and the system coordination.