Pre-planning navigation with virtual environments for people who are blind using Wii technology

Virtual environments (VEs) that represent real spaces give people who are blind the opportunity to build a cognitive map in advance that they will be able to use when arriving at the real space. In this research study Nintendo Wii based technology was used for exploring VEs via the Wiici application. The Wiimote allows the user to interact with VEs by simulating walking and scanning the space. By getting haptic and auditory feedback the user learns to explore new spaces. We examined the participants' abilities to explore new places, construct a cognitive map, and perform orientation tasks in the real space.