Vision-Based Navigation System for Blind Users
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Solution Overview
Problem
People with blindness and low vision face difficulties in navigating through spaces efficiently and safely, as well as finding destinations of interest.
Innovation Solution
A navigation system that processes vision data to generate a map of a space, compares query images with reference images to determine location and direction, and computes a path to a destination.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If vision-based mapping and navigation systems are implemented to assist blind and low vision users, then navigation accuracy and safety are improved, but device complexity and computational requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The navigation system is divided into distinct functional modules: a mapping unit that generates spatial maps from vision data, a localization unit that determines user position by comparing query images with reference images, and a navigation unit that computes paths. This segmentation allows each module to specialize in specific tasks, improving overall reliability while managing complexity through modular design.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary processing layer that compares features of query images with features of reference images to determine location and direction. This intermediary feature comparison mechanism acts as a mediator between raw vision data and navigation decisions, enhancing navigation safety through accurate localization while maintaining manageable system complexity through standardized processing interfaces.
2Measurement precision
If real-time image processing and comparison are performed to determine location and direction, then navigation accuracy is improved, but processing time and computational energy consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The mapping unit pre-processes vision data to generate comprehensive spatial maps and reference images before navigation queries are made. By performing this mapping action in advance, the system avoids redundant processing during real-time navigation, reducing processing time while maintaining high location accuracy through pre-computed reference data.
Solution Approach 2:
The localization unit extracts and compares only relevant features from query images and reference images rather than processing entire images. This feature extraction approach selectively takes out the essential information needed for location determination, significantly reducing computational time and energy consumption while preserving measurement precision through focused feature comparison.
3Manufacturing precision
If comprehensive vision data processing is performed to generate accurate spatial maps, then map accuracy is improved, but data processing complexity and computational resources increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex manual or mechanical mapping methods with automated vision-based processing. The mapping unit uses image processing algorithms to automatically generate accurate spatial maps from captured vision data, substituting mechanical surveying methods with computational approaches that achieve higher map accuracy while managing processing complexity through automated workflows.
Solution Approach 2:
The system processes vision data by transforming it into different parameter representations suitable for navigation tasks. The mapping unit converts raw image data into spatial coordinates, distances, and directional information, changing the parameters from visual to geometric representations. This parameter transformation improves map accuracy while reducing processing complexity by working with optimized data formats.
Data Source
AI summary
A navigation system includes one or more processing circuits configured to process vision data of a space, generate, based on the vision data, a map of the space, receive a query image of the space, compare a feature of the query image with one or more features of the vision data to generate a comparison between the query image and the vision data, determine, based on the comparison between the query image and the vision data, a location and a direction associated with the query image within the space, associate the location and the direction associated with the query image with a position and an orientation within the map, and compute, based on the position and the orientation within the map, a path through the space to a destination.