Benefits of thermal and distance-filtered imaging for wayfinding with prosthetic vision
Abstract Visual prostheses such as the Argus II provide partial vision for individuals with limited or no light perception. However, their effectiveness in daily life situations is limited by scene complexity and variability. We investigated whether additional image processing techniques could impro...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2024-01-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-51798-x |
| _version_ | 1797349969769791488 |
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| author | Roksana Sadeghi Arathy Kartha Michael P. Barry Paul Gibson Avi Caspi Arup Roy Duane R. Geruschat Gislin Dagnelie |
| author_facet | Roksana Sadeghi Arathy Kartha Michael P. Barry Paul Gibson Avi Caspi Arup Roy Duane R. Geruschat Gislin Dagnelie |
| author_sort | Roksana Sadeghi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Visual prostheses such as the Argus II provide partial vision for individuals with limited or no light perception. However, their effectiveness in daily life situations is limited by scene complexity and variability. We investigated whether additional image processing techniques could improve mobility performance in everyday indoor environments. A mobile system connected to the Argus II provided thermal or distance-filtered video stimulation. Four participants used the thermal camera to locate a person and the distance filter to navigate a hallway with obstacles. The thermal camera allowed for finding a target person in 99% of trials, while unfiltered video led to confusion with other objects and a success rate of only 55% ( $$p<0.01$$ p < 0.01 ). Similarly, the distance filter enabled participants to detect and avoid 88% of obstacles by removing background clutter, whereas unfiltered video resulted in a detection rate of only 10% ( $$p<0.01$$ p < 0.01 ). For any given elapsed time, the success rate with filtered video was higher than with unfiltered video. After 90 s, participants’ success rate reached above 50% with filtered video and 24% and 3% with normal camera in the first and second tasks, respectively. Despite individual variations, all participants showed significant improvement when using the thermal and distance filters compared to unfiltered video. Adding a thermal and distance filter to a visual prosthesis system can enhance the performance of mobility activities by removing clutter in the background, showing people and warm objects with the thermal camera, or nearby obstacles with the distance filter. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T12:38:02Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-068ee74c5e184a9c85b3ef72d7409da1 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T12:38:02Z |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj.art-068ee74c5e184a9c85b3ef72d7409da12024-01-21T12:19:47ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222024-01-0114111010.1038/s41598-024-51798-xBenefits of thermal and distance-filtered imaging for wayfinding with prosthetic visionRoksana Sadeghi0Arathy Kartha1Michael P. Barry2Paul Gibson3Avi Caspi4Arup Roy5Duane R. Geruschat6Gislin Dagnelie7Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins School of MedicineDepartment of Biological and Vision Sciences, State University of New York College of OptometryDepartment of Ophthalmology, Johns Hopkins School of MedicineAdvanced Medical Electronics CorporationJerusalem College of TechnologyZikron, Inc.Department of Ophthalmology, Johns Hopkins School of MedicineDepartment of Ophthalmology, Johns Hopkins School of MedicineAbstract Visual prostheses such as the Argus II provide partial vision for individuals with limited or no light perception. However, their effectiveness in daily life situations is limited by scene complexity and variability. We investigated whether additional image processing techniques could improve mobility performance in everyday indoor environments. A mobile system connected to the Argus II provided thermal or distance-filtered video stimulation. Four participants used the thermal camera to locate a person and the distance filter to navigate a hallway with obstacles. The thermal camera allowed for finding a target person in 99% of trials, while unfiltered video led to confusion with other objects and a success rate of only 55% ( $$p<0.01$$ p < 0.01 ). Similarly, the distance filter enabled participants to detect and avoid 88% of obstacles by removing background clutter, whereas unfiltered video resulted in a detection rate of only 10% ( $$p<0.01$$ p < 0.01 ). For any given elapsed time, the success rate with filtered video was higher than with unfiltered video. After 90 s, participants’ success rate reached above 50% with filtered video and 24% and 3% with normal camera in the first and second tasks, respectively. Despite individual variations, all participants showed significant improvement when using the thermal and distance filters compared to unfiltered video. Adding a thermal and distance filter to a visual prosthesis system can enhance the performance of mobility activities by removing clutter in the background, showing people and warm objects with the thermal camera, or nearby obstacles with the distance filter.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-51798-x |
| spellingShingle | Roksana Sadeghi Arathy Kartha Michael P. Barry Paul Gibson Avi Caspi Arup Roy Duane R. Geruschat Gislin Dagnelie Benefits of thermal and distance-filtered imaging for wayfinding with prosthetic vision Scientific Reports |
| title | Benefits of thermal and distance-filtered imaging for wayfinding with prosthetic vision |
| title_full | Benefits of thermal and distance-filtered imaging for wayfinding with prosthetic vision |
| title_fullStr | Benefits of thermal and distance-filtered imaging for wayfinding with prosthetic vision |
| title_full_unstemmed | Benefits of thermal and distance-filtered imaging for wayfinding with prosthetic vision |
| title_short | Benefits of thermal and distance-filtered imaging for wayfinding with prosthetic vision |
| title_sort | benefits of thermal and distance filtered imaging for wayfinding with prosthetic vision |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-51798-x |
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