Soon, a car for visually challenged drivers
By ANIFriday, July 2, 2010
LONDON - A new car that could help visually challenged motorists to drive is under development, according to researchers.
The National Federation of the Blind and Virginia Tech say they hope to demonstrate a prototype that helps a sightless person to get behind the wheel in 2011.
The technology called non-visual interfaces, will guide the driver by providing aural information. Vibrating gloves or streams of compressed air directed behind the wheel would help communicate in order to avoid collisions and reach a destination.
“We’re moving away from the theory that blindness ends the capacity of human beings to make contributions to society,” The Telegraph quoted Dr. Mark Maurer, president of the National Federation of the Blind, as saying.
The idea came after the vehicle won third place in a competition for driverless vehicles, using sensors to perceive traffic, avoid crashing into other cars and objects and run like any other vehicle.
A visually challenged driver will test drive the car near the famed Daytona racetrack and attempt to simulate a typical driving experience.
Proponents of the idea believe that more than anything else, the idea will change the way people perceive the blind. (ANI)
