GuideTouch: An Obstacle Avoidance Device with Tactile Feedback for Visually Impaired
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arXiv
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Preprint |
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2026
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| _version_ | 1866911388666953728 |
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| author | Kozlov, Timofei Trandofilov, Artem Gazaryan, Georgii Tokmurziyev, Issatay Cabrera, Miguel Altamirano Tsetserukou, Dzmitry |
| author_facet | Kozlov, Timofei Trandofilov, Artem Gazaryan, Georgii Tokmurziyev, Issatay Cabrera, Miguel Altamirano Tsetserukou, Dzmitry |
| contents | Safe navigation for the visually impaired individuals remains a critical challenge, especially concerning head-level obstacles, which traditional mobility aids often fail to detect. We introduce GuideTouch, a compact, affordable, standalone wearable device designed for autonomous obstacle avoidance. The system integrates two vertically aligned Time-of-Flight (ToF) sensors, enabling three-dimensional environmental perception, and four vibrotactile actuators that provide directional haptic feedback. Proximity and direction information is communicated via an intuitive 4-point vibrotactile feedback system located across the user's shoulders and upper chest. For real-world robustness, the device includes a unique centrifugal self-cleaning optical cover mechanism and a sound alarm system for location if the device is dropped. We evaluated the haptic perception accuracy across 22 participants (17 male and 5 female, aged 21-48, mean 25.7, sd 6.1). Statistical analysis confirmed a significant difference between the perception accuracy of different patterns. The system demonstrated high recognition accuracy, achieving an average of 92.9% for single and double motor (primary directional) patterns. Furthermore, preliminary experiments with 14 visually impaired users validated this interface, showing a recognition accuracy of 93.75% for primary directional cues. The results demonstrate that GuideTouch enables intuitive spatial perception and could significantly improve the safety, confidence, and autonomy of users with visual impairments during independent navigation. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2601_13813 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | GuideTouch: An Obstacle Avoidance Device with Tactile Feedback for Visually Impaired Kozlov, Timofei Trandofilov, Artem Gazaryan, Georgii Tokmurziyev, Issatay Cabrera, Miguel Altamirano Tsetserukou, Dzmitry Robotics Human-Computer Interaction Safe navigation for the visually impaired individuals remains a critical challenge, especially concerning head-level obstacles, which traditional mobility aids often fail to detect. We introduce GuideTouch, a compact, affordable, standalone wearable device designed for autonomous obstacle avoidance. The system integrates two vertically aligned Time-of-Flight (ToF) sensors, enabling three-dimensional environmental perception, and four vibrotactile actuators that provide directional haptic feedback. Proximity and direction information is communicated via an intuitive 4-point vibrotactile feedback system located across the user's shoulders and upper chest. For real-world robustness, the device includes a unique centrifugal self-cleaning optical cover mechanism and a sound alarm system for location if the device is dropped. We evaluated the haptic perception accuracy across 22 participants (17 male and 5 female, aged 21-48, mean 25.7, sd 6.1). Statistical analysis confirmed a significant difference between the perception accuracy of different patterns. The system demonstrated high recognition accuracy, achieving an average of 92.9% for single and double motor (primary directional) patterns. Furthermore, preliminary experiments with 14 visually impaired users validated this interface, showing a recognition accuracy of 93.75% for primary directional cues. The results demonstrate that GuideTouch enables intuitive spatial perception and could significantly improve the safety, confidence, and autonomy of users with visual impairments during independent navigation. |
| title | GuideTouch: An Obstacle Avoidance Device with Tactile Feedback for Visually Impaired |
| topic | Robotics Human-Computer Interaction |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.13813 |