Perception of depth information by means of a wire-actuated haptic interface

The VIDET project is aimed at investigating the possibility of developing a wearable robotic system for helping the mobility of visually impaired persons. The basic idea consists in the conversion of real-time depth data gathered through stereo-vision into a virtual, 'bas-relief' model perceivable by means of a haptic interface. In this paper we describe the real-time stereo system, review the basic principles of the two main haptic devices developed so far, and present new experimental results concerning extraction of depth data by the stereo system and haptic perception of the virtual model recovered from stereo-data.