
Smarter Canes in the Making
Behind the scenes, Hearsee Mobility is designing the next generation of smart canes—focused on tighter GPS integration and even greater reliability for indoor environments. These

Behind the scenes, Hearsee Mobility is designing the next generation of smart canes—focused on tighter GPS integration and even greater reliability for indoor environments. These

Hearsee Mobility recently installed its innovative indoor navigation system at Utah Arts Academy, making it the first school in the country to feature this technology

At CES 2024, Hearsee Mobility unveiled its latest assistive technology to a global audience. The response affirmed what our community already knows—indoor accessibility is a
Your journey matters. Whether it’s overcoming barriers, navigating new spaces, or celebrating everyday victories, we want to hear how mobility and accessibility have shaped your life. Share your experiences and inspire others in the blind and low-vision community.
Tyson, 31, is a Senior at Utah Tech University studying Communications. He is the first of two siblings living with Retinitis Pigmentosa, a rare eye disease affecting how the retina interprets light. Tyson’s sight began to degrade in the third grade when he remembers wearing thick glasses to aid his vision and needing multi-volume large-print textbooks for classes. Though he can distinguish shapes and people of high contrast with the help of corrective glasses, Tyson broke so many pairs that he decided to stop wearing them, choosing to rely on his little remaining vision and a walking cane when in public.
Tyson trained at the Utah Division of Services for the Blind and Low Vision at the age of 18 to learn how to rely on his other senses to travel, clean, cook, and other life skills. He is considered a master at mental mapping, a skill in which someone can memorize their surroundings using specific environmental triggers, and has relied on these skills to confidently travel and live in multiple states.
He relied on environmental sounds to help him when traveling outside but admits this system is not without flaws. “Yesterday there was new construction on my path to school and it interfered with my environmental sounds. I couldn’t tell if I was going left or right or straight ahead, and accidentally veered into traffic! I didn’t realize it until a guy yelled at me from his car!”
Tyson continues to love dinosaurs, movies, collaborative games, and Star Wars. When asked how he would use Hearsee’s environment description service Tyson quickly replied, “The dinosaur museum! I grew up liking dinosaurs. A lot of museum displays show a descriptive video or audio, but they don’t actually describe the skeletons or displays. Sometimes it’s nice to be with someone who can describe the surroundings to you, but it would be great to appreciate the displays when I’m alone.”
Danielle, 42, lost her sight at the age of 21. She has a love for life that has never diminished. When asked about her positive attitude, Danielle says, “You have to feel your path. I believe in people before anyone else does. A lot of sighted people think being blind is hard, but it’s all about how you look at life. There’s nothing I can’t do!”
Danielle’s positive attitude is perfectly suited to teaching. She is a Life Skills Instructor with the Utah Division of Services for the Blind and Low Vision (DSBVI), uplifting those transitioning into a life without sight by teaching them how to travel with a walking cane, how to cook and clean without sight, and how to enjoy the world around them as much as possible.
When asked where she would like to have an indoor navigation system installed for easier access to the blind Danielle said, “I want this stuff in all public bathrooms and to label trash cans! You know what’s embarrassing? Asking someone to help you find and flush the toilet!”
Danielle has found a passion for painting and sculpting since losing her sight. She credits a love of art and music for bringing her to her husband, saying she would paint while he played the guitar. She currently lives in Salt Lake City with her husband and daughter.
Cynthia, 60, lost her sight at the age of 55 due to Macular Degeneration, a condition that gradually degrades one’s central vision. Cynthia was determined to live as fully as possible and devoted 6 months to learning how to travel with a walking cane and adapt her daily life to her new condition with the help of trained life skill instructors, also blind.
Cynthia continues to garden and spend time outdoors as she did before losing her sight. She admits that her condition has caused her to reconsider how she enjoys these activities and that she’s proud of finding systems that work for her new lifestyle: “I love to garden. I love to get my hands in the dirt. I mark the different plants in my garden with chopsticks and different lengths of string. I can go out and pick all my produce and cook it myself. I love that none of our fresh food has chemicals.”
She says, “I’m just like you. I just can’t see. I can do everything I always did, except drive and catch baseballs.”
When asked if she’s comfortable walking around new places alone Cynthia laughingly admitted, “When I go somewhere new I walk towards any voices I hear. I just stand around listening to people to try and figure out where I should go. Lots of people assume someone blind is also deaf, so I get to be a fly on the wall! Isn’t that terrible?”
Cynthia lives in Hurricane, Utah, with her husband. She enjoys spending time with her adult children and grandchildren.
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