Abstract
Creating a virtual reality (VR) in computers by combining visual information and pseudo touch sensing through the haptic point-and-response device is actively investigated. However, it is not easy for visually impaired individuals to sense a virtual reality relying solely on audio-haptic sensing, being strictly detached from visual information. The purpose of our project is the development of haptic VR technologies for aiding visually impaired individuals recognize his or her surroundings and sense geometric constructions. We plan to investigate creation of VR sensing by a visually impaired individual from the pseudo haptic sensing at the fingers through the data-gloves worn on them. We show that it can be applied to increase physical securities of visually impaired individuals, for example, on the pavement without tactile blocks where he could be got lost or on the railway station where he is faced with a danger of falling down onto the railway. Our method is to inform him through the hand-held long cane a virtual haptic sense of guiding tactile blocks or of a guide-fence on the platform against falling-down.
