Enhancing Obstacle Visibility with Augmented Reality Improves Mobility in People with Low Vision

Avoiding obstacles while navigating is a challenge for people with low vision, who have impaired yet functional vision, which impacts their mobility, safety, and independence. This study investigates the impact of using Augmented Reality (AR) to enhance the visibility of obstacles for people with lo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:IEEE transactions on visualization and computer graphics Vol. 31; no. 5; pp. 3336 - 3343
Main Authors: Maman, Lior, Vol, Ilan, Szpiro, Sarit F.A.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: United States IEEE 01.05.2025
Subjects:
Adult
Augmented Reality
Electronic mail
Female
Glass
Human-centered computing-Accessibility-Accessibility technologies
Human-centered computing-Human computer interaction (HCI) -Interaction paradigms-Mixed / augmented reality
Humans
Legged locomotion
Male
Middle Aged
Mobility Limitation
Navigation
Reviews
Safety
Stairs
Three-dimensional displays
User experience
Vision, Low - physiopathology
Vision, Low - therapy
Visualization
Walking
Young Adult
ISSN:1077-2626, 1941-0506, 1941-0506
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Avoiding obstacles while navigating is a challenge for people with low vision, who have impaired yet functional vision, which impacts their mobility, safety, and independence. This study investigates the impact of using Augmented Reality (AR) to enhance the visibility of obstacles for people with low vision. Twenty-five participants (14 with low vision and 11 typically sighted) wore smart glasses and completed a real-world obstacle course under two conditions: with obstacles enhanced using 3D AR markings and without any enhancement (i.e., passthrough only - control condition). Our results reveal that AR enhancements significantly decreased walking time, with the low vision group demonstrating a notable reduction in time. Additionally, the path length was significantly shorter with AR enhancements. The decrease in time and path length did not lead to more collisions, suggesting improved obstacle avoidance. Participants also reported a positive user experience with the AR system, highlighting its potential to enhance mobility for low vision users. These results suggest that AR technology can play a critical role in supporting the independence and confidence of low vision individuals in mobility tasks within complex environments. We discuss design guidelines for future AR systems to assist low vision people.
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ISSN:1077-2626
1941-0506
1941-0506
DOI:10.1109/TVCG.2025.3549542