A group of undergraduate engineering students at Rice University — Adam Vuong, Cristiana De Sousa, Issy Tai, and Santiago Brent — aren’t just classmates. They’re Kunde’s Friends.
Kunde is a Houston dog who lost his vision to advanced glaucoma, and the quartet of engineers decided to turn his journey into a learning opportunity.
Building off of a previous project that utilized LiDAR (or Light Detection and Ranging) sensors, the group designed a wearable vest that helps blind dogs like Kunde safely navigate their surroundings.
It uses haptic feedback powered by a stereoscopic camera, which gives real-time spatial information without restricting Kunde’s natural movement or play.
Traditional solutions for blind dogs include rigid “halo” frames and e-collars that can be bulky and uncomfortable, providing yet another confusing obstacle for blind pets to socialize and explore.
Kunde’s owners reached out to the Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen at Rice to look for a new solution to help their beloved furry friend move through his journey into vision loss with ease.
The students signed up for the task.
“Existing devices tend to be bulky or uncomfortable, and they rely on the dog bumping into things as tactile feedback, which is not ideal,” Vuong said in a statement.
“We wanted to create something that would give Kunde the independence to move around and interact with his environment without constant collisions and stress.”
The team’s design is a lightweight vest fitted with something called “linear resonant actuator motors,” which are commonly used in wearables and smartphones that vibrate. These motors alert the dog when obstacles are near.
Additionally, a set of stereoscopic cameras are (comfortably) mounted atop Kunde’s head to capture real-time depth information. This information is processed by a custom printed circuit board and a stereoscopic vision-processing computer module.
Then, the information is sent to Kunde as vibrations on different parts of the vest, depending on the proximity and location of the obstacles.
“Kind of like giving Kunde a second set of eyes, the cameras create a depth map,” Tsai explained. “The closer an obstacle is, the stronger the vibration on that side of the vest.”
The idea is that Kunde can learn what those vibrations mean and adjust his path without human intervention.
And it can be done without costing an arm and a leg.
“The ability to use very cheap cameras in order to create a very complex depth map is pretty amazing, compared to using thousands of dollars of LiDAR equipment or AI cameras,” Brent said in a video for the university.
“I would say the fact that we can create all of this for, I'd say, under $150, and create a very clear, crisp stereoscopic image for this computer vision is pretty insane.”
That doesn’t mean the invention has come without challenges. The team had to create flexible yet protective casings for the electronics and balance their weight distribution, so Kunde could still rely on his natural movements.
They also had to waterproof critical components of the design and adapt it to the Texas heat.
“We had to figure out how to embed electronics into a wearable vest that’s breathable, soft and rugged enough for a dog who loves to play,” said De Sousa. “It was a real exercise in creative problem-solving.”
Kunde’s Friends believe this low-cost application could potentially be used for “cross-species” application, including in human rehabilitation technology and therapeutic uses.
“This project shows that with the right combination of low-power sensors and haptic feedback, it is possible to provide real-time spatial guidance in a lightweight, unobtrusive way,” Brent said.
Kunde is still working with the team to test the invention, with video footage showing the fluffy black dog walking with confidence, albeit a little clumsily, with the new wearable attached to his head and chest.
The final prototype will ideally offer a range of up to eight meters and battery life of about two hours, with an adjustable strap that can allow the device to be changed, “depending on Kunde’s mood,” De Sousa explained.
As the students finalize their work, they hope to create a device that works not just for Kunde, but all the other dogs like him.
“The team has made exciting progress, and while there’s still more development ahead to fully meet the client’s needs, they’ve already demonstrated the power of having a real-world challenge to drive meaningful design,” the team’s mentor Heather Bisesti said.
“It’s motivating for students to see how their work can make a direct difference in someone’s — or some dog’s — life.”
Header image courtesy of Niraj Yadav/Pexels
