Voice Operated Guidance Systems for Vision Impaired People: Investigating a User-Centered Open Source Model

Many wireless networking systems were established to manipulate metropolitan networks in order to provide internet, voice, data, video and TV services in large cities. Two major systems were used for such services; Local Multipoint Distribution Service (LMDS) and Multi-channel Multipoint Distribution Service (MMDS). Both of these systems are fixed broadband access networks and both have problems in the cost, speed, coverage area and last-mile bottleneck, especially when the network size is increased. Deploying a new technology of a Wireless Optical Mesh network (WOMN) which uses wireless optical communications between nodes can overcome these problems and can provide more bandwidth, an interference-free network, a frequency-free network, and more effective applications that require a real time responding like video surveillance. We investigate the WOMN against LMDS and MMDS to show that WOMN is better than both LMDS and MMDS in commercial, geographical coverage, and real time applicability. We will also investigate the challenges to deploy the new technique for local and metropolitan networks between different city buildings. Furthermore, we will show that we can have a better performance by including microwave weather detection mechanism through the estimation of the fog and rain presence under several different conditions. In addition, combining the Free Space Optic (FSO) technology with the 60GHz radio waves can increase the WOMN link availability, thus providing an alternative communication way and increasing the distance between wireless optical devices. This strategy can avoid the effect of fog and snow on wireless signal since they do not have effect on the propagation of 60GHz radio waves. The WOMN link can be engineered by adjusting antenna size, choosing a high-power option, and changing the microwave frequency.