Stereo sight

A device that aims to help blind people sense their environment has been developed by researchers as part of the three-year EU-funded CASBliP project.

The system uses stereo images to produce information on the behaviour of moving objects, which is then relayed to a blind person in the form of a sound map.

Project co-ordinator, Guillermo Peris-Fajarnés from Universidad Politécnica de Valencia, explained: 'Part of our brain associates sound with spatial awareness. Research undertaken by Laguna University suggests that we soon forget hearing these sounds and instead build up a three-dimensional image of our environment. This can be used to convey details of an object's size and distance to aid in the mobility of a blind person.'

The CASBliP (Cognitive Aid System for Blind People) project brings together seven European organisations with expertise in the fields of positioning systems, artificial vision, audio and visual interface, object detection and cognitive 3D models.

The artificial-vision component of CASBliP is based on research undertaken at Bristol University that focused on the development of stereo cameras that capture, analyse and process in-depth images of the surrounding environment. The captured scenes are converted into images that feature simplified information such as contrast and depth.