Sonification of Colour and Depth in a Mobility Aid for Blind People

Abstract

The See Color interface transforms a small portion of a colored video image into sound sources represented by spatialized musical instruments. Basically, the conversion of colors into sounds is achieved by quantization of the HSL color system. Our purpose is to provide visually impaired individuals with a capability of perception of the environment in real time. In this work the novelty is the simultaneous sonification of color and depth, depth being coded by sound rhythm. Our sonification model is illustrated by several experiments, such as: (1) detecting an open door in order to go out from the office; (2) walking in a hallway and looking for a blue cabinet; (3) walking in a hallway and looking for a red tee shirt; (4) moving outside and avoiding a parked car. Videos with sounds of experiments are available on http://www.youtube.com/guidobologna.