US Patent 10134304 Scanning obstacle sensor for the visually impaired

Various arrangements for avoiding obstacles for a visually-impaired pedestrian are presented. An m by n matrix of distance measurements may be created using a scanning time of flight (ToF) sensor component for various different directions. The m by n matrix of distance measurements and the m by n direction matrix may be analyzed to identify a first obstacle having a vertical height that differs by at least a predefined threshold measurement from a neighboring second region. Based on identifying the first obstacle, an indication of the first obstacle and an indication of the distance to the first obstacle determined using the m by n matrix of distance indications may be output.