Cane helps blind people recognize faces

Using smartphone technology, the device — known as the "XploR" mobility cane — can identify faces from up to about 33 feet (10 meters) away, researchers say.

If the cane recognizes someone, it alerts a visually impaired user by vibrating and transmitting a sound signal. The cane is also equipped with GPS to help the user navigate.

"My grandfather is blind and I know how useful this device could be for him," Steve Adigbo, one of the cane's developers and a student at Birmingham City University in England, adding,"There’s nothing else out there like this at the moment."

The cane works by taking pictures of people in the environment and comparing them to a bank of images stored on an internal memory card, using facial-recognition software. When it finds a match, it produces a vibration and sends a signal to an earpiece via Bluetooth, the researchers said.

Adapted from: http://www.livescience.com/50796-smart-cane-recognizes-faces.html