When one of the senses is lost, an extremely effective coping mechanism involves hijacking other senses to fill the same role. Usually, hearing and touch are used in place of sight, but an MIT researcher named Gershon Dublon is using the tongue as a way to convey spatial and directional data to the blind. Dublon’s own tongue has been the testbed up until recently, but now the project is progressing to the point where 12 subjects will be using this Arudino-based tool to navigate.
Dubbed “Tongueduino,” this small Arduino system uses a grid of electrodes attached to the tongue to express various forms of input. In the video below, whisker analogs are shown as one method of converting tactile feedback into the system. When attached to magnetic sensors, it could even use the magnetic field of the earth and objects around the subject to convey information about direction and obstacles.
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