I have already put in for a vacation day so I can go down and watch the test run. I cannot wait. Are you friggin' kidding me? This is an excerpt from the AJC...
Could a blind person drive a car? Researchers are trying to make that far-fetched notion a reality.
The National Federation of the Blind and Virginia Tech plan to demonstrate a prototype vehicle next year equipped with technology that helps a blind person drive a car independently.
Only Virginia Tech would be dumb enough to come up with a bar for blind people. Why don't they try and come up with a way to hide Beamer's neck scar.
The technology, called "nonvisual interfaces," uses sensors to let a blind driver maneuver a car based on information transmitted to him about his surroundings: whether another car or object is nearby, in front of him or in a neighboring lane.
The Baltimore-based organization (The National Federation of the Blind) was announcing its plans for the vehicle demonstration at a news conference Friday in Daytona Beach, Fla.
Dude, I am GOING!
The vehicle has its roots in Virginia Tech's 2007 entry into the DARPA Grand Challenge, a competition for driverless vehicles funded by the Defense Department's research arm. The university's team won third place for a self-driving vehicle that used sensors to perceive traffic, avoid crashing into other cars and objects and run like any other vehicle.
Following their success, Virginia Tech's team responded to a challenge from the National Federation of the Blind to help build a car that could be driven by a blind person. Virginia Tech first created a dune buggy as part of a feasibility study that used sensor lasers and cameras to act as the eyes of the vehicle. A vibrating vest was used to direct the driver to speed up, slow down or make turns.
Well YEAH VaTech created a dune buggy. All dirt roads lead to Blacksburg. They need SOMETHING to travel on dirt roads...
The blind organization was impressed by the results and urged the researchers to keep pushing. The results will be demonstrated next January on a modified Ford Escape sport utility vehicle at the Daytona International Speedway before the Rolex 24 race. The latest vehicle will use nonvisual interfaces to help a blind driver operate the car. One interface, called DriveGrip, uses gloves with vibrating motors on areas that cover the knuckles. The vibrations signal to the driver when and where to turn.
Another interface, called AirPix, is a tablet about half the size of a sheet of paper with multiple air holes, almost like those found on an air hockey game. Compressed air coming out of the device helps inform the driver of his or her surroundings, essentially creating a map of the objects around a vehicle. It would show whether there's another vehicle in a nearby lane or an obstruction in the road.
It would SHOW? THEY CAN'T FREAKING SEE!
A blind person, who has not yet been chosen, will drive the vehicle on a course near the famed Daytona race track and attempt to simulate a typical driving experience. Stevie Wonder. Please.
How about you spend a little less time in fantasyland building cars for blind people and start looking at what is going on around you. How about that? You wanna try that?
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