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Inertial Measurement Unit Sensors in Assistive Technologies for Visually Impaired People, a Review.
Karla Miriam Reyes Leiva1,2, Milagros Jaén-Vargas1, Benito Codina3,4
1Center for Biomedical Technology (CTB), Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28223 Madrid, Spain.
Sensors (Basel, Switzerland)
|July 24, 2021
Summary
Assistive technologies, including inertial sensors, aid visually impaired people (VIP). While few systems use inertial sensors alone, they are crucial for navigation and specialized applications when combined with other technologies.
Area of Science:
- Assistive Technology
- Biomedical Engineering
- Human-Computer Interaction
Background:
- Visually impaired people (VIP) face daily autonomy challenges.
- Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) sensors offer low-cost, miniaturized solutions for motion tracking and biomechanical analysis.
- Existing assistive technologies for VIP are diverse, but integration of IMU sensors is less common.
Purpose of the Study:
- To present a comprehensive review of assistive technologies for VIP that incorporate IMU sensors.
- To analyze the technical characteristics, methodologies, and roles of IMU sensors in these systems.
- To identify research gaps and future directions for IMU-based assistive technologies for VIP.
Main Methods:
- Systematic literature review of assistive technologies for VIP utilizing IMU sensors.
- Analysis of technical specifications and application domains of identified systems.
- Evaluation of methodologies and discussion of usability and user-centered design.
Main Results:
- Few assistive systems for VIP exclusively use IMU sensors.
- IMU sensors provide vital data when integrated with optical sensors and radio signals for navigation and specific applications.
- A significant gap exists in research concerning IMU-based aids for rehabilitation and biomechanical analysis in VIP.
Conclusions:
- IMU sensors are valuable components in assistive technologies for visually impaired individuals, particularly when combined with other sensing modalities.
- Future research should prioritize user-centered design principles and explore applications in rehabilitation and biomechanical analysis for VIP.
- Current research predominantly focuses on navigation and obstacle detection, highlighting a need for broader application development.
