Umanath R Kamath and Sudhin M A, students of M S Ramaiah Institute of Technology, recently, bagged the first prize in the ‘Freedom to Innovate’ 2007, a contest for technical innovation organised by Honeywell Technology Solutions Lab, Bangalore.

MSRIT won the prize for the project Andha Asthra, an innovative navigation system for the blind.

The team received a cash prize of Rs 50,000 and a trophy. The winners were also awarded internships at Honeywell to complete their final year projects.

For Andha Asthra, Umanath, student of III year, BE (Electronics & Communication) and Sudhin, student of III year BE (Computer Science & Engineering), used a wearable set of modules, which can give vibrating alerts to the user about obstacles in front and also lets him know the size and position of the obstacle.

It can also detect depressions and elevations in the ground. The adaptable system won’t send alerts if the user is intentionally standing in front of an obstacle.