We’re glad to announce that the SoV Lite research project was present within Romania’s National Pavilion at the Dubai World Expo! The project aims to develop an advanced sensory substitution system to help the blind and visually impaired. The system works by using several video cameras to record the surrounding environment and a small, portable processing unit that employs advanced artificial intelligence algorithms to understand the environment’s configuration and nearby objects. A pair of headphones and a haptic vest are used to relay important information regarding the environment to the user, such as the number, the shape and distance to nearby obstacles. The project is the direct continuator of the Sound of Vision research project, and is a collaboration between Info World Ltd, Politehnica University of Bucharest and the “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University of Iași.

As part of World Expo Dubai, researchers from the Politehnica University of Bucharest have set up a presentation stand within Romania’s National Pavilion, where guests could see how the system worked. As shown in the photos below, the system can be easily equipped by a person. The headgear includes several video cameras connected to a small portable processing unit that easily fits a shoulder bag. The system provides the user information about the surrounding environment using headphones and a haptic vest, such as shown on the mannequin. The display illustrates how the environment in front of the mannequin is perceived by the system. During regular usage, the haptic vest vibrates to let the user know about the presence, the direction and distance of any obstacles in their path. As part of the demonstrative setup, the vest is equipped with multicolored lights that turn on in accordance with the distance and direction between the mannequin and the persons in the audience.

The project aims to improve the precision of algorithms employed for making sense of the surrounding environment, as well as to benefit from the miniaturization trend that is expected to result in a smaller, yet more performant system.