Belgian company wants to use Vision Pro as a 'guide dog'

The Belgian company In The Pocket and the Dutch expertise center for the blind and partially sighted, Royal Visio, are working together on a proof of concept. They are investigating whether the Apple Vision Pro headset can help people with visual impairments navigate.

With the right software and adjustments, the Vision Pro could be a replacement for guide dogs, In The Pocket writes in a blog post. This can be useful if a blind or partially sighted person has been on a waiting list for a guide dog for a long time. “The Apple Vision Pro scans the space around the user and detects possible obstacles. As soon as the user comes close to an obstacle, such as a wall, table or chair, they will hear a sound from the direction of the obstacle. With spatial audio the user can accurately determine where exactly the obstacle is. The closer they get to the obstacle, the faster the sound is repeated,” says the company.

In The Pocket developed two concepts, writes the Belgian newspaper De Tijd. The first application generates a virtual armor around the user that is made up of several cubes. When one of those cubes comes into contact with an object, the Vision Pro produces a sound that comes from the direction of the object. The louder the sound, the closer the object is. The second application scans and detects horizontal and vertical surfaces. The app places cubes on the surfaces it detects. They also emit a sound signal when the user comes close to an object.

The application is not yet perfect. For example, the glasses do not detect people and windows and can only be used indoors. The battery life of the VR glasses is also a disadvantage, and not every participant was satisfied with the weight and wearing comfort of the Vision Pro. Still, Visio developer Christiaan Pinkster thinks the technology can be 'very useful'. “We need to make the hardware more accessible in the coming years, so that the system can be used by everyone. In a few years, hopefully you can walk into a hospital as a blind person and ask your glasses where the counter is or to follow the arrows of the correct route .A real indoor navigation system.”