IBM research is working with civil engineering and general contracting firm Shimizu Corporation and real estate developer Mitsui Fudosan to conduct a voice navigation field experiment. The test is being conducted in COREDO Muromachi shopping park in Tokyo Japan.
The field test utilizes 224 beacons that have been strategically placed throughout the shopping park. It then uses the IBM-Carnegie Mellon University pilot smartphone app called NavCog, which was developed to help people with visual impairments, wheelchair use, and language barriers.
The user can then tell their smart phone where they want to go, and the app will begin to give the user voice directions to their location. It also keeps in mind what obstacles might be a problem NavCog, for the user, depending on the user’s disability.
