Proceeding Paper

Smart Blind Walking Stick with Integrated Sensor †

Premarajan Akhil *, Ramdas Akshara, Raju Athira, Srinivasan Padmanaban Kamalesh Kumar,
Mathialagan Thamotharan and SobanasinghDevapaul Shobha Christila

Department of Biomedical Engineering, Hindusthan College of Engineering and Technology,

Coimbatore 641032, India
* Correspondence: [email protected]
† Presented at the International Conference on Innovative Research in Renewable Energy Technologies,
West Bengal, India, 16–17 March 2022.

Abstract: Our society has a large population of visually impaired people. If you notice them, you
will know they cannot walk without help; they need guidance to reach their destination. They face
many struggles in their daily lives. Even though technology is advancing rapidly today, there is
no affordable device available for people with visual impairments. Blind people have difficulty
performing their daily activities, so a Smart Blind Stick was designed to help them move and perform
their tasks more easily. However, when visually impaired people are walking on the road, they find
it difficult to see obstacles along the way, which makes it very dangerous. A smart stick is one of
the best ways to point around. This stick is equipped with infrared sensors to detect stair cases, and
a pair of ultrasonic sensors to detect any other obstacles in front of the user, within a range of four
meters. A water sensor is also used in the system, which detects water on the user’s path. All found
obstacles are alerted to the user through a buzzer.

Keywords: Arduino UNO R3; ultrasonic sensor (HC-SR04); water sensor; IR sensor (A215/450); buzzer

Citation: Akhil, P.; Akshara, R.;

Athira, R.; Kamalesh Kumar, S.P.;
Thamotharan, M.; Shobha Christila, S.
1. Introduction
Smart Blind Walking Stick with A person’s eyes are an important organ, as they process visual information and
Integrated Sensor. Mater. Proc. 2022, transmit it to the brain; also, because people receive and process 83% of information from
10, 12. https://doi.org/10.3390/ their environment through their eyes, eyes play a crucial role in the lives of humans. Many
materproc2022010012 people are deprived of this information, however. There are a number of severe disabilities,
Academic Editors: Sudipta Das, K.
such as blindness, in which a person must face many challenges despite technological
Vasu Babu, Samrat Paul and
advancements. Blindness refers to a condition in people lacking the ability to perceive light,
Kunal Chakraborty as well as those who have so little vision that they must use other senses as substitutes
for their ability to see. The visually impaired refers to a person with complete or partial
Published: 6 September 2022 blindness. According to an 11 October 2017 file from the World Health Organization
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral (WHO), an estimated 253 million human beings are dwelling with imaginative and prescient
with regard to jurisdictional claims in impairment, out of which 36 million are definitely visually impaired and 217 million have
published maps and institutional affil- reasonable to extreme imaginative and prescient impairment.
iations.
2. Motivation
The proposal to do the job comes from friends and the community. In our society,
a large number of blind people struggle to perform their daily activities. These people
Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. need the help of others, especially in situations such as crossing roads, seeing obstacles, etc.
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
These events have prompted us to draw up an instrument that will be of great benefit to
This article is an open access article
the blind.
distributed under the terms and
conditions of the Creative Commons 3. Problem Statement
Attribution (CC BY) license (https://
In order to furnish a useful, environmentally friendly navigation resource for blind
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/
4.0/).
people, more than a few researchers have conducted the extensive variety of lookup

Mater. Proc. 2022, 10, 12. https://doi.org/10.3390/materproc2022010012 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/materproc

Mater. Proc. 2022, 10, 12 2 of 7

works [1]. Initially, these humans depended solely on others for their simple wants and
mobility. Blind humans have used the white cane and skilled puppies for help [2], however
these techniques have sure limitations. While white canes are inexpensive, they cannot
discover boundaries accurately. The user might also solely be in a position to observe
limitations via touch, which leaves them with little time to react to adverse conditions.
These options are no longer so efficient, as a skilled canine is expensive, and it may get
injured or sick [3]. Thus, these options are no longer efficient. Subsections are introduced
and mentioned beneath that describe and analyze the preceding work, primarily based
on facets and applied sciences concerned with solely obstacle-detecting digital journey
aids (ETAs), or solely impediment detectors alongside function locators and conversation
techniques [4]. There are about 37 million blind humans in the world, with more than
15 million blind human beings residing in India. While congestion of barriers can be
troublesome for non-visually impaired human beings as well, it is even more challenging
for the visually impaired [5,6]. The wants of human beings with visible disabilities are
regularly met through exterior assistance. Visually impaired humans may additionally
find it hard to navigate via a room or a hallway, barring bumping into objects [7,8]. It
can be challenging to avoid obstacles, even with an on-foot stick, due to the fact it can be
uncomfortable, inconvenient, and inaccurate. In order to allow blind humans to move
freely, a mechanism must be developed to help them with their daily activities.

4. Objective
The aim of this mission is to assist blind human beings with walking with ease, and
be warned when their walking course is blocked by means of different objects, people,
or different comparable obstacles. A buzzer is relayed in the circuit as a warning signal,
whose frequency modifications rely on the distance from the object. The nearer the object
is, the louder the buzzer beep frequency will be.

5. Proposed System
This device consists of a bodily sensor related to a microcontroller. The code has been
written with an Arduino sketch, and the microcontroller is interfaced with the ultrasonic
sensor. This Arduino board makes use of the ATmega328p (datasheet) microcontroller. In
addition to 14 digital outputs and inputs, 6 of which are PMW outputs, it has 6 analog
inputs, a 16 MHz quartz crystal, a USB connection, a strength jack, and an ICSP reset
button. When contact is made, two wire probes feel the presence of water by means of
the precise resistance of water. Blind customers will be in a position to navigate freely to
their favored region with the system. Moreover, it is effortless to use and user-friendly. It
is realistic, and is mass made to be used by the visually impaired. The machine has the
function of detecting the rear limits located during the movement in and out of navigation.
A smart stick is usually an embedded device that combines the following: the effort of the
sensory nerves to detect the boundaries ahead of time, rather than the blind from top to top
within a distance of 400 cm per head. Inaudible sensors and water sensors capture real-time
statistics and send them to a small controller. As soon as this information is available, the
microcontroller launches the buzzer. The water gadget sees water below, and the battery is
powered by circuits. Hence this proposed system is helpful for visually impaired people
with the help of varied component to detect obstacles.

6. Hardware Components
The project includes a simple electronic system that includes the following components:
Walking Stick, Arduino (UNO R3), Ultrasonic Sensor (HC-SR04), IR Sensor (A215/450),
Water Sensor (LE 25.00), Switch, Voltage regulator, Power supply, Buzzer.
Mater. Proc. 2022, 10, 12 3 of 7

6.1. Components Description

6.1.1. Arduino
Arduino (UNO R3) is an open-source hardware and software company, project and
consumer community that designs and builds single-board microcontrollers and microcon-
troller kits to create digital units and interactive sensors, and controls each body digitally. It
can be set up to configure any device with additional sensors. The key features of this board
usually include, DIP (Dual-inline-package), removable and AT-mega328 microcontroller.
The layout of this board shown in Figure 1, can be easily downloaded using the Arduino
laptop system. This board has great support from the Arduino community, which will
make it a much easier way to start working on embedded electronics, as well as in many
larger applications.

Figure 1. Arduino UNO R3 Pin Diagram.

6.1.2. ULTRASONIC SENSOR (HC-SR04)

The ultrasonic sensor is mainly used for proximity sensor purposes, and in our project
this sensor is mainly used as an object detection system. As this application mainly covers
blind people, this kind of sensor integrated system is mainly helpful for those kind of
people. The sensor which we used in this project covers a distance of about 2 cm to 400 cm,
but the main criteria that has to be kept in hand is the environment, which should be free
from water vapour because water vapour will spoil the range of the sensor. The distance
between the sensor and the object will be sensed and the information will be given to the
microcontroller so that the alarm will be turned on and it will be elucidated to the subject.
This ultrasonic sensor module is a four-pin module whose pins are Vcc, Trigger, Echo and
Ground, respectively.

6.1.3. IR SENSOR (A215/450)

The IR sensor module consists mainly of an IR Transmitter and Receiver, OPamp,
Variable Resistor (Trimmer pot), and LED outlet. IR LED Transmitter: IR LED emits
light, in a wide infrared frequency. IR light is not visible to humans as its wavelength
(700 nm–1 mm) is much higher than the visible light intensity. IR LEDs have an optical
illuminating angle of approximately 20–60 degrees, and range of approximately a few
inches to several feet, depending on the type of IR transmitter and the manufacturer. Some
transmitters operate with a range of several miles. An IR LED is white or transparent
in color, so it can provide high light intensity. Photodiode Receiver: the photodiode acts
as an IR receiver as it operates when light falls on it. A photodiode is a semiconductor
with a P-N junction, which operates in Reverse Bias, which means it initiates current in
reverse direction when light drops in it, and the current flow value is equal to the amount
Mater. Proc. 2022, 10, 12 4 of 7

of Light. This feature makes it useful for IR detection. A photodiode looks like an LED,
with a black color on its outer surface; the black color absorbs a very high amount of light
shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2. IR Sensor (A215/450) Pin Diagram.

6.1.4. LM358 Op-Amp

The LM358 is an Operational Amplifier (Op-Amp) used as a voltage comparator
for IR sensors. The comparator will compare the threshold voltage set using pre-set
(pin2) and photodiode’s resistor voltage (pin3). The photodiode’s series resistor voltage
drop > Threshold voltage = Opamp output is high, and photodiode’s series resistor voltage
drop < Threshold voltage = Opamp output is low. When the Opamp output is high, the
LED at the Opamp output terminal turns ON (Indicating Detection of object).

6.1.5. WATER SENSOR (LE 25.00)

The water sensor brick is designed for water detection, which can be widely used to
detect rainfall, water level, and even leak liquate. The brick is mainly made up of three
parts: an electronic brick connector, 1 MΩ resistor, and several rows of bare wires. This
sensor works by having a series of exposed Ω trackers connected to the ground, and connected
between ground-based tracking sensors. Sensor traces have a weak pull-up resistance of
1 MΩ. The resistor will pull the value of the sensor trace up until the drop of water sensor
Ω
traces to the bottom track. Believe it or not, this circuit will work with your Arduino digital
I/O pins, or you can use it with analog pins to detect the amount of water-generated
connections between the ground track and the sensors. This item can judge the water level
through a series of interlocking strings to measure a drop of water/size. This sensitive
water sensor can easily convert the water amount to an analog signal, and the output analog
value can be applied directly to the system function, and then to accomplish the function of
a water level alarm. This item has low power consumption, and high sensitivity, which are
major features of this module. The High Sensitivity Water Sensor can be compatible with
Arduino UNO, Arduino mega2560, Arduino ADK, etc.

6.1.6. VOLTAGE REGULATOR (LM 7808)

The LM7808 series of three terminal positive controls are available in the TO-220
package, with several constant output voltages, making them useful for many different
applications. Each type uses an internal current limit, thermal shut-off and protection
of a safe working environment, which prevents it from failing. If a sufficient immersion
temperature is provided, it can produce an output of more than 1A current. Although it
was designed primarily as a fixed power controller, these devices can be used with external
components to obtain adjustable voltages and currents shown in Figure 3. One of the main
advantages of these voltage regulators is that no matter if the input voltage fluctuates, they
will provide a fixed voltage at the output, but the input voltage should not be less than the
Mater. Proc. 2022, 10, 12 5 of 7

minimum required voltage of the ICs. The input voltage in any condition must be 2 V to
3 V higher than the output voltage. To get a stable 8 V output from LM7808 as discussed
above, it is suggested that the input voltage must be at least 2 to 3 V higher than the output
voltage. The IC is a DC device, so the input voltage must be DC. Additionally, to get 1.5 A
at the output the input current should be at least 2 A.

Figure 3. Voltage Regulator Pin Diagram.

6.1.7. PHOTO DIODE RECEIVER

The photo diode acts as an IR receiver as it operates when light falls on it. The photo
diode is a semiconductor with a P-N junction, which operates in the reverse bias, which
means it begins to conduct the current in a backward direction when the light drops on it,
and the current flow value is equal to the amount of light. This feature makes it useful for
IR detection. The photodiode looks like an LED, with black on the outside which is shown
in Figure 4. The black color absorbs the maximum amount of light.

Figure 4. Photodiode Receiver.

6.1.8. BUZZER
The buzzer is a small but effective component for adding audio features to our
project/system. It is very small and compact with 2 pins, which is why it can be eas-
ily used on bread board, Perf Board and even PCBs, making this a widely used component
in many electrical systems. There are two types of buzzers commonly found. The one
shown here is a simple buzzer, that if enabled will make a continuous beep sound; another
type called a ready-made buzzer that will look bigger and will produce a “Beep. Beep.
Beep.” sound due, to the internal oscillating circuit located inside it. But the one shown
here is the most widely used because it can be customized with the help of other regions
to easily fit into our app. This buzzer can be operated by simply powering it using a DC
power supply ranging from 4 V to 9 V. A simple 9 V battery can also be used, but it is
recommended that you use a +5 V or +6 V DC controlled supply. The buzzer is usually
associated with a switch on the “ON” or “OFF” of the bus when needed and requires an
interval shown in Figure 5.
Mater. Proc. 2022, 10, 12 6 of 7

Figure 5. The Entire Circuit Diagram Of This Project.

7. Discussion
For further enhancement, our project will be integrated with more powerful sensors
which will provide precise information about the detection of obstacles in a wide range. A
suitable mobile application will also be developed along with the product design, which
can help to identify the location of user, and guide the user the right way by giving voice
guidance through headphones connected with the product. Our product will make use of
GPS to find the shortest and best path to the destination with the help of Google mapping
systems. We will attach GSM in our product, which can help in future for any immediate
casualty help. We will make our product more compact by using VLSI technology to design
PCB unit.

8. Conclusions
It is worth mentioning at this point that the purpose of this study, which is to design
and use a clever and smart walking stick for visually impaired people, is fully realized.
The Smart Stick serves as a basic platform for the next generation of assistive devices to
help the visually impaired to navigate safely inside and out. It is practical and affordable.
It leads to good results in finding obstacles in the user’s path over a distance of 3 m.
This system provides a low cost, reliable, portable, low power consumption and a robust
navigation solution with short clear response time. Although the system has strong nerves
and other components, it has a light weight. Other features of this system can be enhanced
by connecting wireless components between the components, thus increasing the range of
the ultrasonic sensor and the use of the speed detection technology. While developing such
an enabling solution, visually impaired and blind people in all developing countries were
at the top of our priorities. The device built into this function can only detect obstacles and
moisture. Holes cannot be detected using this device or other types of obstacle. Therefore,
a better device can be built using ultrasonic sensors; Arduino Uno and other tools that use
audio commands to alert the user of what is in his or her way. The vibrator can also be
added to make it easier to use. In the future, some changes to improve system performance
will be added. These include: Global Positioning System for GPS User Location, and GSM
modules to communicate the location with a relative or caregiver. It should also include a
wide variety of handles for flexible management.

Author Contributions: Conceptualization and methodology, P.A.; software and validation, R.A.
(Ramdas Akshara); formal analysis and resources, R.A. (Raju Athira); writing—original draft prepara-
tion, S.S.C.; writing—review and editing and data curation, M.T.; supervision and resources, S.P.K.K.
All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding: This research received no external funding.
Institutional Review Board Statement: Not applicable.
Mater. Proc. 2022, 10, 12 7 of 7

Informed Consent Statement: Not applicable.

Data Availability Statement: The data used to support the findings of this study are included within
the article.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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