i-Glove: An Intelligent Glove System Based on Deep Learning to Support Deaf-blind Individuals in Recognizing Banknotes

The deaf-blind community faces significant challenges in identifying banknotes due to simultaneous hearing and vision impairments, which complicate their ability to conduct daily financial transactions. Recent advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based assistive technologies offer promising potential to address these challenges. This study presents the "i-Glove," a wearable device specifically developed to assist the deaf-blind community in Bangladesh with accurate banknote identification. The i-Glove is designed to recognize nine common Bangladeshi banknotes (e.g., BDT 20, 50, 100) through a camera module integrated on the palmar side of the glove, which captures real-time images of the banknotes. These images are then processed by a convolutional neural network (CNN) model to accurately classify each banknote. Identified notes are translated into unique vibration patterns that are delivered to the user through a shaftless vibration motor embedded in the glove, providing intuitive, non-visual communication. Compared to previous approaches, our model demonstrates superior performance even with a compact dataset, achieving an overall F1-score accuracy of 96.55%, with class-specific precision, recall, and F1-score metrics ranging from 90% to 100%. Additionally, a dedicated application is developed which supports real-time banknote detection and interfaces seamlessly with the glove. The proposed system represents a significant step forward in assistive technology for the deaf-blind community, empowering the users with greater autonomy in financial transactions.