The French manufacturer GoSense has been developing a device since 2015 to help visually impaired people gain independence and mobility. Suitable for all white rods, the system combines a smart box, headphones with spatial audio, and a smartphone app.
The system developed by GoSense consists of a box, the Rango, which attaches to all types of white canes. The Noor earphones are positioned in front of the ears, they do not obstruct the auditory canal and allow listening to the sounds emitted by the Rango while allowing the user to remain fully alert to their environment.
Announcement of intersections
The companion application, which makes the link with the Rango in Bluetooth, is also used for the smart capabilities of the smartphone and in particular for localization. Version 4.0 of the Rango indeed includes a very practical new feature: the announcement and description of intersections and crossroads.
When the user is close to an intersection, Rango automatically speaks street names, starting with the street the user is on, then describing from left to right, all the streets in the intersection or ‘intersection. This information is spoken spatially: the street to the left of the user is thus spoken in the left ear.
The previous version of Rango already offered another service much appreciated by system owners: location indication at all times, as well as real-time access to the public transport timetable when the user is near the stop. Added to this are other functions such as increasingly loud resonance when approaching an obstacle and 3D sound feedback to distinguish the position of the obstacle and easily get around it.
Recognized as a class 1 medical device, it complies with the new European standards. A study recently indicated that 96% of Rango users had ” significantly or strongly improved their daily life “. You should also know that the system can be reimbursed up to 75% of its price (€2,000 per pack).
