Project aids visually impaired

Jim Liakus/Exponent Photographer LEAN ON ME: Mark Frier, a junior in the Schools of Engineering, discusses the design for an adjustable table at an Engineering Projects in Community Service workshop Wednesday.

By Yuri Victor
Staff Writer

Visually impaired students at Purdue will soon be using a handheld device that aids in directions.

Matthew Barker, a junior in the School of Science, said the device uses a global positioning system with braille overlay and voice output. Students type in the position of where they want to go and the system tells them how to get there.

In accordance with Disability Awareness Month, students and professors from Engineering Projects in Community Service demonstrated three designs that will assist students with disabilities.

"It’s a lot of fun designing and it's for a great cause," Barker said.

The interactive campus map project started three semesters ago to develop a Web-based guide that assists students with disabilities. The students enter their location and the location they are traveling to and the guide displays the fastest route. Using ArcView software, the map includes different route possibilities based on conditions such as hills or curves that may be difficult for wheelchair users.

Helping the medically obese and chronic back pain sufferers, one group has invented an ergonomic adjustable chair. Each chair costs less than $500 to produce. Fifty have been produced so far and eight can be found already in deployment on campus.

Engineering Projects in Community Service is a Purdue University organization which allows teams to design, build and deploy systems to solve engineering problems in the local community.

Lynne Slivovsky, an advisor for the team and a lecturer in the Schools of Engineering, said, "We do great projects that help the community. It's good for students to work in small groups with a professor to help.

"We've made great progress this semester."

The projects are still under construction but the group hopes to begin testing the systems on campus shortly.

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