Project description
To enable advanced facility management and location-based applications, like pathfinding and navigation, geospatial and location awareness are two necessary types of information that a system requires. With 3D remote sensing technologies such as laser scanners, it is now possible to create a 3D model of any environment at a very large and precise scale. On the other hand, the geolocation awareness can be provided by localisation technologies such as the Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) or the Ultra-wide band (UWB), which allow locating with high precision elements of the space. However, these two technologies are not readily available for navigation applications. A 3D model obtained from scanning is an unstructured type of data and needs to be processed to identify points of interest or obstacles and described them. This part involves an evaluation of the current configuration of the studied area regarding its ability to allow navigation for BVI people. A second big challenge is to identify the optimal placement of the localisation sensors to maximise their efficiency in supporting navigation and manage them as they become part of the assets relevant to navigation (landmarks, staircases, emergency exits and so on).
Outcomes
- Scanning of selected campus sites.
- Asset localisation, identification and management.
- Assessment of BVI navigation requirements on the campus.
- Optimisation of UWB and BLE sensors positioning for BVI navigation purpose.
Publication
Sandoval, E.B., Li B., Diakite, A., Zhao, K., Oliver, N., Bednarz, T., Zlatanova, S. (2020) Visually impaired user experience using a 3D-enhanced facility management system for indoors navigation, ICMI 2020 Companion - Companion Publication of the 2020 International Conference on Multimodal Interaction, pp. 92 – 96 DOI: 10.1145/3395035.3425247
Project participants
| Participant’s details | Organisation | Responsibility |
|---|---|---|
| Dr Abdoulaye Diakite | UNSW, Built Environment, GRID | Geospatial Information Systems |
| Dr Jack Barton | UNSW, Built Environment, GRID | Geospatial Information Systems |
| Prof. Sisi Zlatanova | UNSW, Built Environment, GRID | Geospatial Information Systems |
| Dr Binghao Li | UNSW, School of Minerals and Energy Resources | Localisation technologies |
| Dr Eduardo Benitez Sandoval | UNSW, School of Art & Design | Social Robotics |
| A/Prof. Tomasz Bednarz | UNSW, School of Art & Design / EPICentre | Data Visualisation |
Contact person
Jack Barton (jack.barton@unsw.edu.au)