Russian scientists have created a smart helmet specifically designed for people with partial or total vision impairment, and it has been included in the list of the top five recent inventions.
According to the inventors, the helmet scans the surrounding environment and alerts the user to hazards using audible signals.
Sight is one of the most important human senses, as humans rely on it to obtain information about their surroundings. Visual impairment, whether partial or total, leads to significant difficulties in orientation, mobility, and personal care. Currently available solutions on the market are limited in functionality or require regular paid subscriptions.
The new device, created by young researcher Dimitrios Palogianidis from the St. Petersburg Electrotechnical University "LETI", combines computer vision and machine learning technologies in one easy-to-use device, which is a special smart helmet.
It is worth noting that in 2023, the young researcher obtained a patent for a method of analyzing three-dimensional sound using two-dimensional imaging. He also created a prototype navigation device that measures the distance to objects, particularly passing cars, and emits audio signals whose frequencies change according to the distance between them and the user. Based on this technology, Balougiannidis developed a helmet that scans the surrounding environment.
The researcher says: "Unlike current devices, this helmet can assess the level of danger threatening the user's life. The system works using multi-sensory analysis, where an optical camera and a rangefinder, mounted on the helmet, capture information about surrounding objects, while a gyroscope tracks the direction of the user's head."
Using artificial intelligence, the helmet analyzes the surrounding environment, identifies objects, and tracks their movement. The system then plots a safe route in real time, alerting the user to obstacles using spatial audio, and continuously adjusting the route based on changes in the surrounding environment.
According to Rospatent (the Russian Federal Service for Intellectual Property), this innovation was included in the list of the top five outstanding medical innovations developed by Russian scientists this year.
