Third Eye For the Blind
Have you ever thought that there was a way for blind people to easily navigate their surroundings? Well, there is! The Third Eye for the Blind allows for the visually impaired to use a more modern and innovative device that will replace the traditional ways blind people navigate in their environment.
Engineer
Frank
Area of Interest
Chemical Engineering
School
The Bronx Center for Science and Mathematics
Grade
Incoming Senior
Final Milestone
Here is my Bill of Materials for The Third Eye for the Blind: frank-valoy-bluestamp-bill-of-materials-bom-sheet1
Here is my Build Plan for The Third Eye for the Blind: frank-valoy-build-plan
For my main project, I chose to build the Third Eye for the Blind. This device is essentially a way for blind people to easily navigate their surroundings. This is how the Third Eye for the Blind is programmed: when the ultrasonic sensor is close to an object, it causes the buzzer to beep. This alerts the blind person to step away from any object in his or her way.
An ultrasonic sensor has two openings: a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter sends out an ultrasonic wave towards any nearby object and the receiver detects the reflective wave. The speed of sound is about 340 meters per second and the ultrasonic sensor uses this information by timing how long the receiver detects the reflective wave to determine how far it is from any object. A challenge that I faced was adjusting the ultrasonic sensor’s sensitivity. Before, the ultrasonic sensor was very sensitive and it would beep continuously when it wasn’t close to an object. This made the device ineffective. I overcame this challenge through trial and error and by testing the threshold of the code.
One thing that I enjoyed about this project was that I was able to learn how to program and code with an arduino. I didn’t know how to do this before, so it was very fun to see the end product!
Starter Project
For my starter project, I chose to build the “Useless Machine”. A useless machine is essentially a machine that has a function, but no purpose. This is what the machine does: when the machine is turned on by flipping the switch, an arm comes out of the box and flips the switch back to its original position. After that happens, it goes back into the box. As the useless machine operates, the following happens: when the switch is flipped, the machine is turned on and a current goes through the motor, causing the motor to move in a counter-clockwise direction. As a result, the arm that is attached to the motor moves counter-clockwise and it comes out of the box to turn the switch back to its original position. Once this happens, the current is reversed, which causes the motor to move in a clockwise direction. At that moment, the current is still flowing, meaning that the arm will still be moving, but back into the box. When the arm is back into the box, it hits a limit switch, cutting the flow of the current completely. As a result, the arm remains motionless until the switch on the top is turned on.
One challenge that I faced when constructing this project was screwing the screws into the rods that help to support the walls of the useless machine. I overcame this challenge by using a vice to grip each rod and by using a bigger screw to screw in each screw into each rod. I really liked this project because it was very hands-on. It was fun to put each component together and the end product was satisfying.