Fallcorp MyWay

FallCorp Industries is developing MyWay, a smart cane for people with low vision. The cane combines ultrasonic sensors, a camera for computer vision and audio guidance powered by artificial intelligence. It also sends an emergency alert in case of a fall. The product is in the prototyping phase.

The white cane detects an obstacle when it touches it, at ground level. What is at head height, what approaches from the side and what changes in the scene stay out of its reach.

The product

The team adds distance perception to the cane: the ultrasonic sensors measure what is ahead, the camera reads the scene, and the audio guidance speaks the information out loud. A fall triggers an emergency alert. The person keeps the choice of route; the cane describes what it meets along the way.

What it changes in practice

• An obstacle is signalled before contact, because the ultrasonic sensors reach farther than the cane.
• A fall triggers an emergency alert without the person having to ask for it, because the cane detects the fall itself.
• Information about the surroundings reaches the ear, because the guidance is audio, and the hands stay free for getting around.

Revolutionizing navigation for the blind and visually impaired