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Robots to Help the Blind
Timberwolf0122 writes "Computer scientists in the US have developed a robot that could help blind people to shop or find their way around large buildings.
Utilising a RFID tags to find products and a laser range finder to avoid obsticals. The prototype was developed at Utah State University, is this the end of guide dogs?"
Assuming that they don't change the stock locations in the store too often, why wouldn't it work?
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maybe this effort should be going towards that instead? How far away are artificial eyes that are good enough for a blind person to shop? And if they're good enough to shop, they are probably good enough for a lot of things that that shopping robot won't be good for.
The answer to this is no, because not all blind people want some impersonal robot. A dog is much nicer as it's alive and can make decisions in the external environment that a robot cannot make.
XML is like violence. If it doesn't solve the problem, use more.
Guide dogs can often do more than merely guide a person while walking:
1) Can also be trained to fetch things like phones (very useful for when a blind person falls and hurts themselves and then cannot get up), keys, and miscellaneous items that a blind person accidentally drops and then need assistance in finding on the floor.
2) As another poster mentioned, a guide dog can provide a level of home defense against intruders. I once heard an author on NPR describe how a dog's primary sense is smell with eyes being second. This is why its so important (as far as the dog is concerned) to have its nose out the window when traveling in the car. Smells provide much more information. Any ways, imagine what goes through a dog's mind when he smells a stranger that is also giving off odors related to adrenaline/anxiety. The dog is going to go into a state of extreme alertness and defensiveness and will try to let everyone in the house know about what its discovered irrespective of whether it was trained to be a guard dog or not.
3) Dogs can alert you/wake you in cases of emergencies such as fires.
4) Dogs have amazing senses of smell and its believed they can smell hormonal changes and odors related to anxiety and stress and such, can tell when there is something "wrong" with their master.
It's sad that the National Federation of the Blind, which believes it represents its constituents, thinks of guide dogs as a crutch and would love to replace them with impersonal, imperfect robots.
Compare the costs (money, effort, expertise) of purchasing and maintaining a guide robot versus a guide dog. Now compare the capabilities of each. Will the robot be self-healing, last a whole day on the equivalent of a bowl of chow, and adapt to changes in the daily routine?
More importantly, which would you want guiding you across a busy city intersection? The GPS guided robot or a dog that has a sense of self-preservation?
Fancy robots are expensive to develop at first but once mass production starts this could be a great alternative to dogs... Considering what it costs to train a dog and the "carrying costs" associated with keeping one...
All the torrents you could want.
I have a cousin who is blind and uses a guide dog. A few weeks ago, his dog essentially mauled some burgler attempting a home invasion.
I'll trust a well trained dog over a robot/computer any day, and I consider myself a hardened geek. I find animals much more reliable and predictable than any system I've used.
Plus you get affection - and anyone who brings up virtual pets or robots being affectionate doesn't is self-dillusional and doesn't understand the benefit of a relationship with a real living thing.
These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
First, do you think the military would have ever used horses to carry them into battle if they couldnt handle a bit of stress, with proper training? come on... Im sure any dog that grew up on a quiet farm would freak out too!
Second, if you followed the link, they are *Miniature* horses that wear tennis shoes. Not much larger than a golden retriever.
No.
I can say that since I RTFA:
"People think we're trying to replace guide dogs, but we're not."
RFID in and of itself is not good or evil. It is a tool, and like any other tool can be used or abused; it is how it is used that is good or evil. I would say that this is a good use.
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My wife is blind and uses a dog. Seeing Eye Dogs do not, as some believe, lead the blind person to where they want to go. The blind must still know where they want to go and how to get there.
The dog simply helps them to avoid things like curbs, stairs and so on. It does so by simply stoping at them and waiting for the blind person to give them instructions as to what to do next.
It is perfetly possible to get lost with a dog.
We have seen all sorts devices of this type all the time canes with sonar, devices with GPS, you name it. The fact remains that nothing will ever subsitute for proper mobility training for the blind.