A Step Forward: Bringing Haptic Canes to Classrooms and Campuses

We recently had the opportunity to start collaborating with the School Association for Special Education of DuPage County (SASED) and orientation and mobility instructors at Northern Illinois University (NIU). We provided each group with prototype haptic-enhanced white canes for their students. The growing success of this charitable white cane project has been achieved through the combined efforts of our Lake Forest College research students, the generous financial contributions from our supporters, and the enthusiastic participation of our new collaborators.These innovative canes are designed to deliver tactile feedback, assisting users in detecting obstacles and navigating their surroundings more effectively.

As we progress, the feedback collected from these students and their teachers will be crucial in refining the design and functionality of our haptic canes. We extend our gratitude to both SASED and NIU for their generosity and willingness to partner with us on this project.