Project

# Title Team Members TA Documents Sponsor
15 SafeStep: Smart White Cane Attachment for Audio + Haptic Navigation and Emergency Alerts
 Abdulrahman Almana
Arsalan Ahmad
Eraad Ahmed
 Abdullah Alawad design_document1.pdf
proposal1.pdf
# TEAM: Abdulrahman Almana (aalmana2), Arsalan Ahmed (aahma22), Eraad Ahmed (eahme2)

# PROBLEM
White canes provide reliable obstacle detection, but they do not give route-level navigation to help a user reach a destination efficiently. This can make it harder for blind or low-vision users to travel independently in unfamiliar areas. In addition, audio-only directions are not always accessible for users who are deaf or hard of hearing, and if a user falls there is often no automatic way to notify others quickly, which can delay assistance.
# SOLUTION OVERVIEW
We propose a modular smart attachment that mounts onto a standard white cane to improve navigation and safety without replacing the cane’s core purpose. The attachment will connect via Bluetooth to a user’s phone and headphones to support clear spoken directions, and it will also provide vibration-based cues for users who need non-audio feedback. The attachment will include fall detection and a basic emergency alert workflow that sends an alert to a pre-set emergency contact with the user’s last known location.
# SOLUTION COMPONENTS
**SUBSYSTEM 1, CONNECTIVITY + CONTROL**

Handles Bluetooth pairing, basic user controls, and system logic.

Planned Components:

1-ESP32 (Bluetooth Low Energy) microcontroller, ESP32-WROOM-32

2-Power switch + SOS button + cancel button

3-LiPo battery + USB-C charging module

**SUBSYSTEM 2, NAVIGATION OUTPUT (AUDIO + HAPTICS)**

Supports spoken directions through headphones and vibration cues for users who need non-audio feedback.

Planned Components:

1-Bluetooth connection to smartphone (using standard maps app audio)

2-Vibration motor (coin vibration motor, 3V) + motor driver (DRV8833)

3-Optional buzzer for confirmations

**SUBSYSTEM 3, LOCAL SENSING (WHEN MAPS NOT AVAILABLE)**

Provides short-range obstacle warnings and basic direction/heading feedback when GPS/maps are unreliable.

Planned Components:

1-Long-range distance sensor (Benewake TFmini-S LiDAR) for obstacle proximity alerts

2-IMU (MPU-9250) for motion/heading estimation

**SUBSYSTEM 4, FALL DETECTION + EMERGENCY ALERTING**

Detects falls and triggers an emergency workflow through the phone without a custom app.

Planned Components:

1-IMU-based fall detection using MPU-9250 data

2-BLE trigger to phone using standard phone shortcut automation

3-Phone sends SMS/call to pre-set emergency contact with last known GPS location

# CRITERION FOR SUCCESS

1-The attachment pairs to a smartphone and maintains a Bluetooth connection within 10 meters indoors.

2-The vibration system supports at least four distinct cues (left, right, straight, arrival).

3-The distance sensor detects obstacles within 20 cm to 12 m and triggers a warning vibration within 1 second.

4-Fall detection triggers within 5 seconds of a staged fall-like event and provides a cancel window (ex: 10 seconds).

5-When a fall is confirmed or SOS is pressed, the phone successfully notifies a designated contact and shares location (through phone shortcut automation).

6-The battery supports at least 1 hour of continuous operation.

# ALTERNATIVES

1-Smartphone-only navigation: Works for audio, but does not provide haptics for deaf/hard-of-hearing users and is not cane-integrated.

2-Smartwatch fall detection: Helps with emergencies but does not guide navigation through the cane.

3-Dedicated smart cane products: Often expensive and replace the cane instead of adding a modular attachment.

4-Wearable navigation (smart glasses): Higher cost and complexity.

Musical Hand

Ramsey Foote, Thomas MacDonald, Michelle Zhang

Musical Hand

Featured Project

# Musical Hand

Team Members:

- Ramesey Foote (rgfoote2)

- Michelle Zhang (mz32)

- Thomas MacDonald (tcm5)

# Problem

Musical instruments come in all shapes and sizes; however, transporting instruments often involves bulky and heavy cases. Not only can transporting instruments be a hassle, but the initial purchase and maintenance of an instrument can be very expensive. We would like to solve this problem by creating an instrument that is lightweight, compact, and low maintenance.

# Solution

Our project involves a wearable system on the chest and both hands. The left hand will be used to dictate the pitches of three “strings” using relative angles between the palm and fingers. For example, from a flat horizontal hand a small dip in one finger is associated with a low frequency. A greater dip corresponds to a higher frequency pitch. The right hand will modulate the generated sound by adding effects such as vibrato through lateral motion. Finally, the brains of the project will be the central unit, a wearable, chest-mounted subsystem responsible for the audio synthesis and output.

Our solution would provide an instrument that is lightweight and easy to transport. We will be utilizing accelerometers instead of flex sensors to limit wear and tear, which would solve the issue of expensive maintenance typical of more physical synthesis methods.

# Solution Components

The overall solution has three subsystems; a right hand, left hand, and a central unit.

## Subsystem 1 - Left Hand

The left hand subsystem will use four digital accelerometers total: three on the fingers and one on the back of the hand. These sensors will be used to determine the angle between the back of the hand and each of the three fingers (ring, middle, and index) being used for synthesis. Each angle will correspond to an analog signal for pitch with a low frequency corresponding to a completely straight finger and a high frequency corresponding to a completely bent finger. To filter out AC noise, bypass capacitors and possibly resistors will be used when sending the accelerometer signals to the central unit.

## Subsystem 2 - Right Hand

The right subsystem will use one accelerometer to determine the broad movement of the hand. This information will be used to determine how much of a vibrato there is in the output sound. This system will need the accelerometer, bypass capacitors (.1uF), and possibly some resistors if they are needed for the communication scheme used (SPI or I2C).

## Subsystem 3 - Central Unit

The central subsystem utilizes data from the gloves to determine and generate the correct audio. To do this, two microcontrollers from the STM32F3 series will be used. The left and right hand subunits will be connected to the central unit through cabling. One of the microcontrollers will receive information from the sensors on both gloves and use it to calculate the correct frequencies. The other microcontroller uses these frequencies to generate the actual audio. The use of two separate microcontrollers allows for the logic to take longer, accounting for slower human response time, while meeting needs for quicker audio updates. At the output, there will be a second order multiple feedback filter. This will get rid of any switching noise while also allowing us to set a gain. This will be done using an LM358 Op amp along with the necessary resistors and capacitors to generate the filter and gain. This output will then go to an audio jack that will go to a speaker. In addition, bypass capacitors, pull up resistors, pull down resistors, and the necessary programming circuits will be implemented on this board.

# Criterion For Success

The minimum viable product will consist of two wearable gloves and a central unit that will be connected together via cords. The user will be able to adjust three separate notes that will be played simultaneously using the left hand, and will be able to apply a sound effect using the right hand. The output audio should be able to be heard audibly from a speaker.

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