Magnetic Navigation System for Visually Impaired People

This article is focused on the navigation of the visually impaired, for their easier orientation in unknown areas. The technical navigation system, whose hardware is integrated into the standard stick for the blind, is based on the principle of a digital analysis of a signal from the magnetometer. The analyzed signal occurs by moving the stick over surface-distributed neodymium magnets, which, with their distribution and orientation of magnetic poles, creates basic orientation pictograms. This detection and identification of magnetic pictograms results in warning signals, which are transmitted to the blind individual via a small vibration motor located in the handle of the blind stick. The individual is then able to interpret several different warning or navigation signals, according to the intensity and quality of the vibrations. This article describes the detection and identification algorithm that has been implemented into the control microcontroller. The article is supplemented with measured courses of magnetic induction for basic orientation pictograms and with photographs of the realized orientation stick sample.