Hi Steemians! :)
Meet my team..
Absolute Zero
Absolute Zero
These are my team-mates in Thesis, together with my colleagues Carlo Atienza 
Our Thesis Proposal is an innovation for the benefit of Visually impaired people. It aims to help them in their daily transportation from one place to another, it also enables them to detect obstacles. Whenever they need help or they wish to notify their families and love ones regarding their current location, they can just push the message button and their loved ones will immediately receives a message about their current location.
Actual Prototype
These are the actual image of our prototype.
We temporarily used an aluminum square tube for sample prototype purposes only.
Last saturday, we gathered together in my house to work on our prototype. It is not yet finalized, we're still working on the unification of all its components.
To insure the functionality and accuracy of our device, the are still some tests that should be conducted considering the proper flow of the system.
We are using Arduino Mega 2560 as our microcontroller.
It is based on the ATmega1280 (datasheet). It has 54 digital input/output pins and 16 analog pins and 4 Hardware Serial Ports. This is where we downloaded the programs to make our system functional. It accommodates everything essential to support the microcontroller.
For Obstacle detection, We used HC-SR04 Ultrasonic Ranging Sensor.
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This sensor provides 2cm to 400cm of non-contact measurement process with a ranging efficiency that has a capacity up to 3mm. Every HC-SR04 module has a built-in Ultrasonic transmitter, a receiver and a control circuit.
We placed 2 HC-SR04 Ultrasonic Sensors at the upper part of the cane. One for the upper obstacles, and the other is for the upper front obstacles.
For the lower obstacles, we placed 3 sensors. Two for each sides, and 1 for lower front obstacles.
In determining the Location information, We used a global navigation satellite system, the GPS (Global Positioning System). It is a satellite-based navigation system made up of at least 24 satellites. It works 24 hours a day, in any weather conditions anywhere in the world. GPS rotates around the world twice a day in a particular orbit. To knw more on how the GPS works, you can see it HERE.
For sending Message Notifications, We used SIM800 GSM/GPRS Module.
It is a quad-band GSM/GPRS module that functions on frequencies GSM 850MHz, EGSM 900MHz, DCS 1800MHz and PCS 1900MHz. This module can transmit Voice, SMS and data information with low power consumption. You just have to put a simcard for it to enable to send a message.
We also used DFPlayer Mini Module.
We used DFPlayer Mini Module to give signal in case of obstacles detected and in giving information about the current location of the user.
The component encircled with green is for the earphone jack that is connected to the DFPlayer Mini Module which is programmed to gives a Voice signal information to the user. We programmed a voice output signal to it, so that it enables to tell the users whenever there is an obstacle around.
The red one is the USB port for the Power source from the Battery which we attached inside the box. It is also chargeable.
For the Direction and Orientation, We also used HMC5883L Magnetometer
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A magnetometer can sense the direction of the strongest magnetic force. It is generally used to detect magnetic north. This Sensor is use to determine the orientation of the user in order for them to navigate to the right direction. By this module an eight-point compass can be made.
The 3 push buttons at the top of the box is for the location info., orientation, and for sending message respectively.
I'm just showin' you an overview of our thesis. You may find it interesting. This is how powerful technology is. It is one of the reasons why i definitely like working stuffs regarding electronics, that's why i choose Electronics Engineering. It helps me to engaged more in the world of technology, it enables us to develop new ideas and innovations, and gain knowledge pertaining to Electronics and how everything works. Also, It allows us to unleash our potential which aims to develop a device that can help the community, especially those people that are visually impaired. It enables them to break the gap between them and the society.
That's all for now. Hope you learned something from this. :) If you have some insights regarding this post, you can leave some comment. It would be interesting.:D
Thank you so much for your time. :)
Till the next mind blasting,
