Biped.ai - a smart CoPilot for the blind and visually impaired

I've also put down the deposit for glidance. I think the thing is with glidance that nothing else has is the fact it makes contact with the ground. Although NOA and other such devices, like Dot Lumin look great, nothing quite beats that assurance of contact on the ground. I think we'll get there but there needs to be a culture shift within the blind community for us to trust anything that is whereable and not on the ground.

Whereas I agree that having something in contact with the ground is likely to make for a better experience, the thought of going out and relying entirely on any technology makes me feel very nervous.

A cane is relatively cheap and disposable. If a cyclist runs over it and it breaks, it's annoying and frustrating but can be easily replaced. If I've spent over a thousand pounds on something then I would be absolutely devastated.

That puts me off with the Glide. That and the way it will look to anyone else. I'm not thinking about vanity, but I want people to recognise me as being blind and no one will have any idea what this little robot shopping bag is doing there.

For biped, it says it's an all in one solution, but I presume being on your shoulders means that you could continue to use a cane with it? I don't know how that would work. But it also feels a little less precarious. This may be unfair but I have also heard it described as wearing a toilet seat but they may have improved the design since then.

I like the idea of the WeWalk in principal because I'm still going out with a cane and using it in the normal way and it's just giving me extra information. And being on top of a normal cane I don't have as big a concern about it getting broken.

There's a lot of promise in all of these and it will be interesting to see what, if any, of these devices actually work out as promised. But I'm not going to put down any money on something just based on promises and marketing.

No way is current tech so accurate that a cane or something touching the ground wouldn't still be required. I simply wouldn't trust going out and possibly tripping up curbs or steps. Or, for that matter missing the top step and falling down them. Until if ever tech can say to within 1cm where your feet are then I personally believe something touching the ground is needed.

Ah OK - there was a clue in your thread title. I was just thrown by it calling itself "all in one" which isn't really the case. In which case I'd feel much more comfortable than with Glide.

I think ultimately being responsible for yourself but using tech to give you information you couldn't really know on your own is the best way forward.

Much as I like the idea of Glide and think it's likely to be the best experience if it works, I think there are too many pitfalls going that way.

I still think WeWalk is the best form factor. Because if I'm going out, I'm grabbing my cane anyway. With Biped I then have to get dressed up in the toilet seat cover and then grab my cane. But we'll see.

What intrigues me about the Glide is that has tactile feedback not just audio. I know audio is the default for most things, but that does not work for all of us in all circumstances. As for a true copilot we're probably still a couple years away from enough processing power and AI to analyze video in real-time which is what is really needed. I still am questioning if Glide will be able to do this quickly enough too.
Competition is good though. We'll see what ends up working.

When I first saw this thread, it made me second-guess my decision to make a deposit on the Glide, but after reading this, I'm relieved to learn that, at least for my own situation, I didn't make a wrong choice. I may try to get smart glasses someday, but this type of wearable just doesn't appeal to me at all. Also, I know that everyone has different needs, preferences, etc., but I was very disappointed in the WeWalk cane. I actually got to test drive that through my work place, and honestly can't recall anything positive about it. Yes, it was in the familiar shape of a cane, but it was very heavy, and I remember the handle being uncomfortable to hold. Also, in my testing, it just vibrated constantly. I took it on a test walk to the dumpster at my apartment complex and actually got lost; this is a walkI routinely do with my titanium cane, or even with no mobility aid at all, so the fact that the WeWalk managed to get me completely disoriented. Anyway, I'm following all of these new tech developments with extreme interest, but at least so far, Glide is the only one that I'm feeling genuinely excited about.

I presume this was the first WeWalk? Not sure if the new one is going to be better.

I'm guessing that a lot of this tech is going to take a while to adjust to. I definitely have a concern over sensory overload with some of this. I guess that's where the Glide comes into its own - because it's not really giving you more information as taking your hand.

Few months back, I was just brainstorming this idea with a friend of mine. Throwing together a raspberry pie computer, some lidar sensers, some IR cameras, and providing haptic feedback through the motors embedded in the Sholder-straps, probably using python scripts. Lol!
Obviously, what these guys are doing seems far more advance.

I got to at least put this on today. It's not quite a toilet seat cover - the wife thought it looked a bit like a military thing and said it made me look like Robocop. It sits round the neck and over the shoulders, and also has bone conduction headphones.

It has a load of little tactile buttons and things that I struggled to get a good feeling for. But you can choose between different modes like object detection, navigation, door detection and crosswalk detection. The object detection worked once it was unmuted and beeped whenever I faced an obstacle. You get higher pitched beeps if the object is above you and lower if beneath. There are modes for cane and dog to change how far down it beeps. The door detection didn't really work in the demo as the voice just stuttered - possibly interference with all the bluetooth devices around. Apparently the sidewalk detection will take continuous images to help you find it. But you still need to switch modes I believe so you can't have object detection then have it say "oh there's a sidewalk".

For navigation you can set three favourites and cycle them on device. You set the favourites up on device using drag and drop. I asked how well that worked with a screen reader. Apparently they've not tested that yet. Ummm... bit of a red flag.

No subscription charges - I think they are intending to run all the AI locally at some point.

I'm not sure I'd particularly want to wear one out - just a bit of a fiddly thing to put on amongst everything else. But was interesting to try.

Impossible to get a good idea of how these things work in an exhibition hall when you aren't moving around though.

The thing made for the blind wasn't tested by the blind before launch. i'm really getting tired of things like that.

Really, drag and drop not working is just, no.

I suppose if they have built the interface according to Apple guidelines then it might be accessible, but I'm not sure that drag and drop is the ideal interface for a screen reader anyway. It sounded like visual impaired customers were a priority over blind customers right now which didn't sit well with me at all.

Not that the product itself is without merit but it does sit in the middle of the options. WeWalk is much cheaper and seems simpler and has a better form factor. Biped can do more - for example changing the pitch based on whether the obstacle is above or below is pretty good, but it's just a bit of a bulky fiddly thing. And then there's Glide which just changes everything.

If I had to choose one, I'd choose glide.

I'll be checking it out in a couple years.

Disclaimer: Subject is a gaming term. Trolls need not apply. . . or reply.

Agree with Brad, I think Glyde would get the most use here. Although the new and improved We Walk cane does not necessarily seem bad, just. . . pricey. I mean, if I am going to shell out that kind of cash, I may as well go all out and aim for the biggest bang for my buck. 🙂