Apr 26 2009
Student From Cardiff Designs Sat Nav for the Blind
Jason Perkins 34, a student of product design at the University of Wales Institute, has been reportedly shortlisted for a covetous Sir James Dyson award for designing a sat nav system that can deliver confidence to the blind people to visit new places. The new pedestrian sat nav device that he calls ‘Peepo’ can sense the vibrations on the fingertips of the blind men to steer them.
Moreover, ‘Peepo’ has been designed in such a way as to listen to the location command of the user, apart from fitting cosily in their palms. Peepo engages the satellite navigation technology to track destinations. Peepo can also be clipped onto the metal lead of the guide dog, as the vibrations on their fingertips tend to provide directions.
Perkins said that he was trying hard to unearth a real requirement for a design that would aid the people overcome a life barrier, and indipendence was one of the best things that could be gifted to someone. He added that he had it designed after considerable research at the Institute of Cardiff for the Blind and around twelve months with his focus group for its development.
He also said that the immediate cause of his coming up with the idea was after knowing the fact that out of ten, nine guide dog owners refused to travel alone to locations they had not been to before. Perkins hopes that he can introduce his invention to America as well.
