Car for blind drivers to be built next year

A car that is able to be driven by completely blind motorists, could be built next year.

A prototype equipped with technology known as non visual interfaces, is currently being produced in a project by the National Federation of the Blind and Virginia Tech.

The cars will be equipped with technology that guides drivers through traffic by transmitting information about other cars or objects, within the vehicles immediate perimeter.

Advocates for the blind admitted it may take time for traditional car buyers to get used to the idea of blind drivers on the road, but admitted the technology would need to prove itself through years of testing.

It has yet to be decided exactly how information will be communicated to the driver, but vibrating gloves or blasts of compressed air, are two of the ideas being considered.

DriveGrip uses gloves that are fitted with vibrating motors, over the knuckle area. Vibrations from the gloves would indicate to the driver when and where to turn.

AirPix is the method using compressed air, the device is approximately half the size of a sheet of paper with multiple air holes. Compressed air from the device will create a map of the objects around the vehicle, helping inform the driver of their surroundings. The device would advise drivers of whether there were any vehicles in the nearby lane or if there were any obstructions in the road.

Once the prototype is made, a blind driver, who has yet to be chosen, will test drive the vehicle at the home of international speedway, Daytona racetrack.

Dr. Mark Maurer of the National Federation of the Blind, compared the scheme to President John F. Kennedy's pledge to send man to the moon. He was cited in The Telegraph as saying: "We're exploring areas that have previously been regarded as unexplorable. We're moving away from the theory that blindness ends the capacity of human beings to make contributions to society."

Mark Prior, Gloucester, AUDI A8 SPORT QUATTRO

Joleen Costello, Leicester, Ford Ka