Implications of Computer Vision Driven Assistive Technologies Towards Individuals with Visual Impairment

TL;DR

This paper explores the benefits and challenges of using computer vision assistive technologies for visually impaired individuals, emphasizing ethical considerations and the need for responsible development.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive analysis of both positive impacts and potential risks of computer vision in assistive tech for the visually impaired, offering guidelines for researchers and developers.

Findings

Computer vision enhances independence for visually impaired individuals.

Bias and privacy concerns are significant challenges in deployment.

Responsible development can mitigate negative implications.

Abstract

Computer vision based technology is becoming ubiquitous in society. One application area that has seen an increase in computer vision is assistive technologies, specifically for those with visual impairment. Research has shown the ability of computer vision models to achieve tasks such provide scene captions, detect objects and recognize faces. Although assisting individuals with visual impairment with these tasks increases their independence and autonomy, concerns over bias, privacy and potential usefulness arise. This paper addresses the positive and negative implications computer vision based assistive technologies have on individuals with visual impairment, as well as considerations for computer vision researchers and developers in order to mitigate the amount of negative implications.