A low cost smart glove for visually impaired people mobility

Degradation of the visual system reduces the mobility of a person that relies only on his sense of touch and hearing. This paper presents the prototype of a low cost smart glove to improve the mobility of the visually impaired people. The glove is equipped with range finders to explore the surroundings: it provides a vibro-tactile feedback on the position of the closest obstacles in range by means of vibration motors. The system is designed to operate with the white cane, enhancing the reliability of this traditional tool.