“It’s 19 feet ahead,” announced the robotic voice from an iPhone held by Moshfik Ahmed, as he navigated through London’s Road Cricket Field in search of a seat.
“Up the stairs,” directed Ahmed, an English cricketer with visual impairment, as he tapped a white cane on his way to the Edrich Stand without any external assistance. “There’s one landing. We’re positioned at 9 o’clock at the base of the stairs. We’ve reached the fifth row.”
Ahmed was among the first to test the newly installed Wayfinding technology at Lord’s, designed for blind and partially sighted individuals, enabling disabled fans to enjoy live sports.
Waymap, the company behind this app-based navigation tool, asserts that the 31,000-seat cricket stadium is the first sports venue worldwide to offer personal GPS, specifically tailored to manage traffic in stadiums, shopping centers, and transportation systems.
Utilizing a £50,000 camera, Waymap meticulously mapped stairs, corridors, inclines, entrances, and concourses to develop a digital twin of this historic cricket ground, allowing the app to navigate users by meter precision.
This technology was implemented ahead of next month’s Test match between England and India. The Marylebone Cricket Club, which manages the venue, believes it can assist other cricket enthusiasts in discovering the most accessible routes throughout the premises.
“The concept is fantastic for the visually impaired,” said Ahmed, who tried the app upon the Guardian’s invitation after participating in a showcase match on Wednesday. “If it functions flawlessly, I can navigate to the station independently, cross the street by myself, arrive at the stadium, and find my way using the app. I know many sports enthusiasts who are visually impaired. This will make it completely accessible for them.”
It was Ahmed’s first experience with the app, which had some initial hiccups. At times, it mistakenly suggested he head in the wrong direction, pointing him to temporarily closed stairs, and even guided him to row 20 of the Edrich Stand instead of column 5.
However, it seemed that both the app and the user were still in the adaptation phase. For instance, the app should be customized to reflect the individual user’s walking pattern, which could clarify the misdirection he experienced.
“It must be precise and dependable,” stated Ahmed, who lost most of his vision in 2017.
“We’re dedicated to delivering an exceptional experience,” said Celso Zuccollo, CEO of WayMap. “WayMap represents a novel navigation approach. It usually requires multiple visits to fully grasp how to use the app effectively.”
“The objective is likely to extend this technology to venues like Wembley, various football stadiums, and we are in discussions with horse racing tracks,” he added.
Existing apps available for users of the Washington, DC public transport system do not adequately alert users to the movements of people around them, particularly those whom Ahmed noted can pose significant challenges in maneuvering safely and comfortably.
Source: www.theguardian.com
