A team of researchers from the Tandon School of Engineering and Grossman School of Medicine at NYU have developed an app, named Commute Booster, aiming to facilitate visually impaired people’s navigation through the subway system of New York City. Utilizing a smartphone’s camera, the app identifies significant signage along the transit route, guiding the user towards their desired destination and bypassing irrelevant signs and advertisements.
Primarily focused on the “middle mile,” Commute Booster addresses the portion of a journey involving traversing turnstiles, busy corridors, and terminals to stay on the correct path. By integrating General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS)—a standardized, publicly accessible database about public transit routes—with Optical Character Recognition (OCR), the app interprets transit signs and provides real-time feedback about vital navigation signs in the smartphone camera’s field of view during the commute, according to an NYU press release.
A preliminary study involving the application at three NYC subway stations—Jay Street-Metrotech, Dekalb Avenue, and Canal Street—displayed a success rate of 97 percent in detecting necessary signs to reach a simulated destination. The application proved proficient in discerning signs from varying distances and angles typical of a standard commute.
John-Ross Rizzo, MD, an NYU professor known for his work in engineering assisting those with disabilities, emphasized the difficulty visually impaired individuals face in navigating the labyrinthine networks of underground corridors, ticket counters, and subway platforms. Most existing GPS-enabled navigation apps cater to the ‘first’ and ‘last’ miles of a journey, leaving a gap for blind or low-vision commuters, which Commute Booster is designed to address.
The researchers’ next step involves conducting a human subject study to assess the app’s performance in real-world scenarios. Following that, the plan is to release it for public usage in the foreseeable future. While Commute Booster relies on standard smartphone sensors, implying that users would need to keep their smartphone cameras raised while navigating the subway, it’s a minor inconvenience compared to the potential benefits. In the future, such an app could potentially be adapted to AR smartglasses, provided they gain widespread consumer acceptance.
Table 1: Preliminary Study Results
| Station | Success Rate |
|---|---|
| Jay Street-Metrotech | 97% |
| Dekalb Avenue | 97% |
| Canal Street | 97% |
Table 2: App Features
| Features | Description |
|---|---|
| GTFS Integration | Incorporates standardized public transportation database |
| OCR (Optical Character Recognition) | Interprets transit signs |
| Real-Time Feedback | Provides feedback about navigation signs in the camera’s field of view |
| Smartphone Compatibility | Uses standard smartphone sensors |
| Middle Mile Focus | Addresses the navigation needs within the subway system |
List: Future Plans
- Conduct a human subject study for real-world testing.
- Make the app available for public use.
- Explore potential for AR smartglasses integration.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Commute Booster App
What is the Commute Booster app?
The Commute Booster app is an innovative tool developed by researchers at NYU’s Tandon School of Engineering and Grossman School of Medicine. It’s designed to assist people with visual impairments in navigating the New York City subway system by recognizing relevant transit signs through a smartphone camera.
Who created the Commute Booster app?
The Commute Booster app was created by a team of researchers at the Tandon School of Engineering and Grossman School of Medicine at New York University (NYU).
How does the Commute Booster app work?
The Commute Booster app uses a smartphone’s camera to recognize relevant signs along the transit route. It integrates General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS), a publicly available database about public transit routes, with Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to interpret signs and provide real-time feedback to users during their commute.
What is the purpose of the ‘middle mile’ focus in the Commute Booster app?
The ‘middle mile’ refers to the portion of a journey where passengers go through turnstiles, busy passageways, and terminals to stay on the correct route. The Commute Booster app is designed to fill a gap left by most GPS-enabled navigation apps, which primarily cater to the ‘first’ and ‘last’ miles of a journey, but often neglect the ‘middle mile’.
How successful was the initial testing of the Commute Booster app?
The app was tested at three NYC subway stations — Jay Street-Metrotech, Dekalb Avenue, and Canal Street — and had a 97% success rate in identifying the relevant signs needed to reach a mock destination.
What are the future plans for the Commute Booster app?
The researchers plan to conduct a human subject study to test the app in real-world navigation scenarios. Following that, they aim to make the app available for public use. There’s also potential to adapt the app to AR smartglasses in the future, should they gain wider consumer acceptance.
More about Commute Booster App
- NYU Tandon School of Engineering
- Grossman School of Medicine
- General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS)
- Optical Character Recognition (OCR)
- AR Smartglasses
3 comments
Finally, an app that helps in the middle mile. hope it comes out soon.. i could use it myself on a crowded day, not just visually impaired folks.
This is such an amazing development for the visually impaired! Cant wait to see it in action.
Love how they’re using OCR and GTFS! Never thought of that combo before. Good job NYU team! Looking forward for the public release.