Active from 2007 to 2010, this project was the first exploration of using a digital smartpen as a platform for creating and presenting audio/tactile graphics – a system of using touch-based audio to annotate tactile figures to improve access to graphical information for the blind. The project, a collaboration between Smith-Kettlewell and Vanderbilt University, used the Livescribe Pulse Pen – a commercial smart pen device that includes a video camera in its tip, a microprocessor that can run Java programs, memory, an audio speaker, a microphone, and a rechargeable battery. When the tip of the…
It has been a mystery as to what level of cortical hierarchy is suppressed in visual processing from the amblyopic eye and how neural representations change when increasing contrast or paying attention to the amblyopic eye. In this project, we will adapt a standard EEG binocular rivalry paradigm, which modulates stimuli at different frequencies in each eye and incorporates a behavioral measure of perceptual eye dominance. We will simultaneously measure neural activity along the cortical hierarchy and perceptual eye dominance under 3 conditions: equal contrasts in the two eyes, perceptually…
The project aims to develop a rapid, objective vision screening tool for identifying amblyopia in preschool children using abnormal binocular rivalry dynamics. Amblyopia is a leading cause of monocular vision loss, affecting 3.3% of the US population. Early intervention before age 7 yields better outcomes, making a scalable screening test for preschoolers an unmet public health need.
We investigate abnormal binocular rivalry dynamics as a behavioral biomarker for amblyopia in adults, exploring diagnostic power in a patient sample and determining the minimum rivalry data collection duration for…
BLaDE (Barcode Localization and Decoding Engine) is an Android smartphone app designed to enable a blind or visually impaired user find and read product barcodes. The primary innovation of BLaDE, relative to most commercially available smartphone apps for reading barcodes, is that it provides real-time audio feedback to help visually impaired users find a barcode, which is a prerequisite to being able to read it.
Link to BLaDE software download: http://legacy.ski.org/Rehab/Coughlan_lab/BLaDE/
Click here for YouTube video demo of BLaDE in action.
The Blind Arduino Project grew out of a community effort led by Dr. Miele in late 2015 to better understand barriers faced by blind people wanting to participate in the vibrant global culture of DIY hardware prototyping.
Arduino is an inexpensive, open-source electronics platform used by everyone from young hobbyists to high-tech developers to build computerized devices integrating sensors, motors, displays, wireless communications, and a host of other tools. Arduino is used in schools to teach children basic principles of design and computer science, in industry to quickly and inexpensively…
This project explores the impact of presentation mode (braille vs. audio) and using different assistive technology (i.e., refreshable braille displays and screen reader) on reading comprehension ability. The findings will have direct implications for how to present educational material to enhance comprehension among fluent braille readers.
Eccentric power refractors need to be calibrated for accommodation and gaze position for individual participants. Calibration however can be time consuming. We look at different conditions in which calibration is necessary or preferable.
This project is now completed. Please see the Publication section for results.
CamIO (short for “Camera Input-Output”) is a system to make physical objects (such as documents, maps, devices and 3D models) accessible to blind and visually impaired persons, by providing real-time audio feedback in response to the location on an object that the user is touching. CamIO currently works on iOS using the built-in camera and an inexpensive hand-held stylus, made out of materials such as 3D-printed plastic, paper or wood.
See a short video demonstration of CamIO here, showing how the user can trigger audio labels by pointing a stylus at "hotspots" on a 3D map of a playground. See…