Navigation aiding stick for the visually impaired

One of the major challenges faced by the blind during mobility is obstacle avoidance and navigation. In this paper, the design of a simple, cost effective cane has been discussed which will help the user in avoiding obstacles as well as in navigation. An array of ultrasonic sensors and standalone GPS receiver with magnetometer has been interfaced with Arduino board for obstacle detection and navigation respectively. The sensor interface and the algorithms for obstacle detection and navigation have been discussed.