A Comprehensive Survey on Emerging Assistive Technologies for Visually Impaired Persons: Lighting the Path with...

Area of Science:

• Computer Science
• Biomedical Engineering
• Assistive Technology

Background:

• Severe visual impairment significantly impacts daily life.
• Existing assistive solutions have limitations.
• The need for advanced, integrated technologies is critical.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Visible Light Communications (VLC) for visually impaired assistance.
• To review current AI and VLC technologies and their suitability for the visually impaired.
• To propose a roadmap for an integrated AI-based VLC solution.

Main Methods:

• Review of commercial assistive solutions.
• Analysis of AI and VLC characteristics concerning visually impaired needs.
• Review of existing research on VLC integration in assistive applications.
• Identification of AI's role in early eye disease detection.

Main Results:

• AI and VLC show high compatibility with the needs of visually impaired individuals.
• AI demonstrates potential for efficient early detection of eye diseases.
• Significant progress and high potential exist for VLC integration in assistive applications.

Conclusions:

• An integrated AI-based VLC solution offers substantial potential for visually impaired assistance.
• This work provides a foundational roadmap for developing such integrated solutions.
• This is the first comprehensive work focusing on the synergy of AI and VLC for visual impairment assistance.