The Revolutionary UltraCane

The Revolutionary UltraCane

Smart and low cost

The SmartCane™ is not the
first of its kind, with similar technologies existing in countries
including South Korea, Taiwan and the United Kingdom, where the
"Ultracane" has been available since 2011.

"Ultracane provides narrow-beam accurate navigation that allows a skilled user to proceed at normal walking speed. It helps you to 'navigate your way' rather than simply 'avoid hitting things.'" explains Dr Paul Clarke, director of Sound Foresight Technology Limited whose Ultracane device provides information on the direction, as well as distance, of an obstacle when aiding the mobility of its thousands of users worldwide.
But a retail price of over $1,000 places it firmly out of reach of many in developing countries.

"The aim of the Ultracane is to offer blind and visually impaired communities a device that gives them independent personal mobility outside the home," he says. The company has recently unveiled an "Ultrabike," a device that fits onto bikes and uses vibration to provide greater freedom on supervised cycle tracks. "Under controlled and supervised conditions the Ultrabike gives blind and visually impaired people an opportunity toexperience -- or re-experience -- riding a bike,"