A white cane is a device used by many people who are blind or visually impaired. A white cane primarily allows its user to scan their surroundings for obstacles or orientation marks, but is also helpful for onlookers in identifying the user as blind or visually impaired and taking appropriate care. The latter is the reason for the cane's white colour, which in many jurisdictions is mandatory.[ citation needed ]
Mobility canes are often made from aluminium, graphite-reinforced plastic or other fibre-reinforced plastic, and can come with a wide variety of tips depending upon user preference.
White canes can be either collapsible or straight, with both versions having pros and cons. The National Federation of the Blind in the United States affirms that the lightness and greater length of the straight canes allows greater mobility and safety, though collapsible canes can be stored with more ease, giving them advantage in crowded areas such as classrooms and public events. [4] [5]
Blind people have used canes as mobility tools for centuries. [6]
In 1921 James Biggs, a photographer from Bristol who became blind after an accident and was uncomfortable with the amount of traffic around his home, painted his walking stick white to be more easily visible. [7]
In 1931 in France, Guilly d'Herbemont launched a national white stick movement for blind people. On February 7, 1931, Guilly d'Herbemont symbolically gave the first two white canes to blind people, in the presence of several French ministers. 5,000 more white canes were later sent to blind French veterans from World War I and blind civilians. [8]
The first special white cane ordinance was passed in December 1930 in Peoria, Illinois, granting blind pedestrians protections and the right-of-way while carrying a white cane. [9]
The long cane was improved upon by World War II veterans rehabilitation specialist, Richard E. Hoover, at Valley Forge Army Hospital. [10] In 1944, he took the Lions Club white cane (originally made of wood) and went around the hospital blindfolded for a week. During this time he developed what is now the standard method of "long cane" training or the Hoover Method. He is now called the "Father of the Lightweight Long Cane Technique". The basic technique is to swing the cane from the center of the body back and forth before the feet. The cane should be swept before the rear foot as the person steps. Before he taught other rehabilitators, or "orientors", his new technique he had a special commission to have light weight, long white canes made for the veterans of the European fronts. [11]
Hoover's long cane technique was perfected at Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital, which opened the Department of Veterans Affairs' first Blind Rehabilitation Center in 1948 and was staffed by former Valley Forge Army Hospital instructors. [12]
On October 6, 1964, a joint resolution of the Congress, HR 753, was signed into law authorizing the President of the United States to proclaim October 15 of each year as "White Cane Safety Day". President Lyndon Johnson was the first to make this proclamation. [13]
While the white cane is commonly accepted as a "symbol of blindness", different countries still have different rules concerning what constitutes a "cane for the blind".
In the United Kingdom, the white cane indicates that the individual has a visual impairment but normal hearing; with red bands added, it indicates that the user is deafblind. [2]
In the United States, laws vary from state to state, but in all cases, those carrying white canes are afforded the right-of-way when crossing a road. They are afforded the right to use their cane in any public place as well. In some cases, it is illegal for a non-blind person to use a white cane with the intent of being given right-of-way. [14] [15]
In November 2002, Argentina passed a law recognizing the use of green canes by people with low vision, stating that the nation would "adopt from this law, the use of a green cane in the whole of Argentina as a means of orientation and mobility for people with low vision. It will have the same characteristics in weight, length, elastic grip and fluorescent ring as do white canes used by the blind." [3]
In Germany, people carrying a white cane are exempted from the Vertrauensgrundsatz (trust principle), therefore meaning that other traffic participants should not rely on them to adhere to all traffic regulations and practices. Although there is no general duty to mark oneself as blind or otherwise disabled, a blind or visually impaired person involved in a traffic accident without having marked themselves may be held responsible for damages unless they prove that their lack of marking was not causal or otherwise related to the accident.
In many countries, including the UK, a cane is not generally introduced to a child until they are between 7 and 10 years old. However, more recently canes have been started to be introduced as soon as a child learns to walk to aid development with great success. [16] [17]
Joseph Cutter and Lilli Nielsen, pioneers in research on the development of blind and disabled children, have begun to introduce new research on mobility in blind infants in children. Cutter's book, Independent Movement and Travel in Blind Children, [18] recommends a cane to be introduced as early as possible, so that the blind child learns to use it and move around naturally and organically, the same way a sighted child learns to walk. A longer cane, between nose and chin height, is recommended to compensate for a child's more immature grasp and tendency to hold the handle of the cane by the side instead of out in front. Mature cane technique should not be expected from a child, and style and technique can be refined as the child gets older.
Human echolocation is the ability of humans to detect objects in their environment by sensing echoes from those objects, by actively creating sounds: for example, by tapping their canes, lightly stomping their foot, snapping their fingers, or making clicking noises with their mouths. People trained to orient by echolocation can interpret the sound waves reflected by nearby objects, accurately identifying their location and size.
The subject of blindness and education has included evolving approaches and public perceptions of how best to address the special needs of blind students. The practice of institutionalizing the blind in asylums has a history extending back over a thousand years, but it was not until the 18th century that authorities created schools for them where blind children, particularly those more privileged, were usually educated in such specialized settings. These institutions provided simple vocational and adaptive training, as well as grounding in academic subjects offered through alternative formats. Literature, for example, was being made available to blind students by way of embossed Roman letters.
Guilly d'Herbemont was the inventor of the white cane for blind people. Guilly was the daughter of a Belgian and a Frenchman. She was born in Brussels as a child, she lived alternately in Brussels and Paris. She later moved to Paris as a musician and writer. It occurred to her that blind people on the streets of Paris were increasingly endangered by the motorization of transport. The police in France used white signal sticks to regulate traffic and stop cars. Ms d'Herbemont had the idea of putting the color white on sticks for visually impaired and blind transporters in order to draw attention to themselves.
Visual or vision impairment is the partial or total inability of visual perception. In the absence of treatment such as corrective eyewear, assistive devices, and medical treatment – visual impairment may cause the individual difficulties with normal daily tasks including reading and walking. The terms low vision and blindness are often used for levels of impairment which are difficult or impossible to correct and significantly impact daily life. In addition to the various permanent conditions, fleeting temporary vision impairment, amaurosis fugax, may occur, and may indicate serious medical problems.
The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) is an organization of blind people in the United States. It is the oldest and largest organization led by blind people in the United States. Its national headquarters are in Baltimore, Maryland.
Rehabilitation engineering is the systematic application of engineering sciences to design, develop, adapt, test, evaluate, apply, and distribute technological solutions to problems confronted by individuals with disabilities. These individuals may have experienced a spinal cord injury, brain trauma, or any other debilitating injury or disease. Functional areas addressed through rehabilitation engineering may include mobility, communications, hearing, vision, and cognition, and activities associated with employment, independent living, education, and integration into the community.
Tactile paving is a system of textured ground surface indicators found at roadsides, by and on stairs, and on railway station platforms, to assist pedestrians who are vision impaired.
A mobility aid is a device designed to assist walking or otherwise improve the mobility of people with a mobility impairment.
Orientation and Mobility, or O&M, is a profession which focuses on instructing individuals who are blind or visually impaired with safe and effective travel through their environment. Individual O&M specialists can work for schools, government agencies or work as private contractors. The Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation and Education Professionals (ACVREP) offers certification for vision rehabilitation professionals in the United States.
The Associated Services for the Blind & Visually Impaired (ASB) is a private non-profit organization in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It assists those living with vision loss to achieve independence through education, support services to advance necessary skills, and community connections. ASB collaborates with local, regional and national partners to provide additional resources and opportunities to clients.
A Hoople is a hoop-shaped mobility aid used by some blind and visually impaired people, and was designed to help them navigate their way over rough terrain or in a rural environment. It performs a similar role to a white cane, but is designed for use in conditions where using a white cane can be difficult, for example, in snow or on sand. It can also be used by young children as a pre-cane aid or by people with arthritis and other medical conditions which would make the use of a traditional cane difficult. The Hoople is designed to detect obstructions, much like cat's whiskers, through both tactile and audio feedback. Because the Hoople is moved along the ground rather than being moved from side to side like a cane, the user can also detect drops two paces ahead, narrow gaps or similar potential obstructions on either side of the path ahead. The Hoople was invented in the early 1990s by Clive Ellis and Tony Larkin, two lecturers at the Royal National College for the Blind in Hereford, United Kingdom.
The Lighthouse of Houston is a private, non-profit education and service center dedicated to assisting blind and visually impaired people in the Houston, Texas metropolitan area to live independently. The Lighthouse serves approximately 9,000 people each year and is a member agency of the United Way of Greater Houston.
The Cleveland Sight Center (CSC) is a non-profit organization that provides services to individuals who are blind or visually impaired. Founded in 1906, it is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) and serves around 10,000 clients annually in Northeast Ohio. The organization also has radio-reading and community outreach programs that benefit a larger number of individuals.
Acoustic wayfinding is the practice of using the auditory system to orient oneself and navigate physical space. It is commonly used by the visually impaired, allowing them to retain their mobility without relying on visual cues from their environment.
Vision rehabilitation is a term for a medical rehabilitation to improve vision or low vision. In other words, it is the process of restoring functional ability and improving quality of life and independence in an individual who has lost visual function through illness or injury. Most visual rehabilitation services are focused on low vision, which is a visual impairment that cannot be fully corrected by regular eyeglasses, contact lenses, medication, or surgery. Low vision interferes with the ability to perform everyday activities. Visual impairment is caused by factors including brain damage, vision loss, and others. Of the vision rehabilitation techniques available, most center on neurological and physical approaches. According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, "Provision of, or referral to, vision rehabilitation is now the standard of care for all who experience vision loss.."
Western Pennsylvania School for Blind Children (WPSBC) is a private chartered school in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania committed to nurturing the unique abilities of individuals with blindness and visual impairment. This multifaceted educational experience serves nearly 500 individuals ages 3 to 59 from 33 counties through on-campus school programs, A Child’s VIEW inclusive childcare, LAVI adult program, residential program and outreach services.
Father Thomas J. Carroll was a Catholic priest and a pioneer in treatment for people who became blind later in their lives,. He was also a leader in implementing liturgical renewal in the Catholic church after Vatican II and took an active part in the civil rights movement.
The LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired is a San Francisco-based nonprofit organization, and is the oldest and largest of its kind in Northern California.
Jyothirgamaya Foundation is a nonprofit organization, based in Thiruvananthapuram Kerala which is actively involved in the empowerment of persons with visual impairment founded in 2015 by Tiffany Brar. The project started as a mobile blind school in 2012. Tiffany Brar herself, traveled through rural areas in public transport in search of blind people of all ages in rural areas in India, with the aim of bringing out of the four walls of their house, to which they are confined, and brings a new light to their eyes, which has nothing to do with their eyesight. Jyothirgamaya Foundation holds Special consultative status with United Nations.
Seiichi Miyake was a Japanese engineer and inventor best known for his work on tactile paving to aid the visually impaired at traffic crossings. Miyake's system of tactile paving was first introduced at a school for the blind in Okayama City in March 1967, and has since been adopted around the world.
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