The advent of GPS systems such as Magellan Corporation's NeverLost automotive GPS system used by Hertz Rental Corporation has provided the foundation of this invention.
解答例
Improving upon and applying this technology to the blind expands the world of travel freedom by allowing the blind to significantly expand the distance they can comfortably and safely traverse.
The military, specifically ground forces whose tactics require light weight/extremely accurate navigation tools to operate in an urban environment will especially benefit from this invention while performing operations in strange/unknown urban surroundings.
The ramifications of positional disorientation and/or inability to map read and navigate roads and within buildings, while leading combatants/equipment have proven to cause delays and loss of tactical advantage and initiative.
This invention improves upon Magellan Corporation's NeverLost automotive GPS navigation system to the blind and military/police users.
NeverLost correlates GPS coordinates with mapped locations and provides real-time directions/steering to selected addresses.
Inventions such as U.S. Pat. No. 5,470,233 claim to capture the ability to keep the visually handicapped user informed of his/her GPS derived location, but it and others fail in their designs/claims to take the process to the next logical step of dramatically improving accuracy, significantly reducing weight and creating the ability to blindly navigate city streets and within major buildings/facilities.
Therefore, applying centimeter accurate GPS system to create an active navigation system for the visually handicapped using digital cellular telephone links to a central base station is the essence of AF Invention AFB0017.
One of the best existing systems is described in the U.S. Pat. No. 5,470,223 issued to Fruchterman, which is incorporated herein by reference and which describes a GPS that helps a blind pedestrian navigate through a city.
This system uses the DoD Global Positioning System and a Differential GPS receiver to determine a pedestrian's longitude and latitude.
Once these coordinates have been determined, they are correlated with a computerized map database.
The map database holds the names and coordinates of specific locations, such as intersections, in a particular region.
The system of the Fruchterman invention retrieves the names of locations from the map database that are near the pedestrian.
These names are then output to a voice synthesizer.
Other prior art systems are described in the following U.S. Patents, which are incorporated herein by reference:
While Fruchterman is excellent, it uses a voice system where city noise might obscure important information.
The present invention uses a Braille display such as shown in the following patents, which are incorporated herein by reference:
Invention is a hand-held GPS for use by the blind and special forces working in urban areas under conditions of total darkness
Unit operates in similar fashion as typical GPS' with the main differences being in application and display.
Application in total darkness and for use by blind is completely different from existing applications and is made possible by use of an active Braille display.
The Braille display can function/present information in at least three modes:
First and primary mode is audio directions; second is through basic Braille vectors on hand-held display; and third is a complex Braille topographic display on the hand-held display.
Individual city, street, address, and major building layouts are programmed into the system's database.
To ensure the highest accuracy, each city transmits a differential GPS signal that works in concert with satellite GPS signals.
The user types in desired address or service (such as closest toilet, security, emergency exit, or telephone) via Braille keyboard.
Database in concert with GPS signal provide user present position and vectors to selected location.
Using audio vectors, voice database provides "turn left, turn right, distance to intersections, roads and intersections, user's current heading, and time to selected destination.
The basic Braille vectors mode provides the user with Braille vector providing both magnitude and direction that is felt by the user.
As the user approaches a turnpoint, the vector becomes shorter and shorter until the turnpoint or destination is reached.
When the selected destination is reached the single point remaining from the vector pulses to let the user know he/she has arrived.
