Exploration of Sonification Feedback for People with Visual Impairment to Use Ski Simulator

Training opportunities for visually impaired (VI) skiers are limited because it is essential for them to have sighted people who guide them with their voices. This study investigates an auditory feedback system that enables ski training using a ski simulator for VI skiers alone. Based on the results of interviews with actual VI skiers and their guides, we designed the following three types of sounds: 1) a single sound (ATS: Advance Turn Sound) that conveys information about turns; 2) a continuous sound (CES: Continuous Error Sound) that is emitted according to the difference between the user’s future position and the position he/she should progress to; and 3) a single sound (Gate-Passed Sound) which is emitted when a user passed through a gate. We conducted an evaluation experiment with four blind skiers and three sighted guides. Results showed that three out of four skiers performed better under the conditions in which ATS and gate-passed sound were emitted than the condition in which a human guide gave calls. The result suggests that a sonification-based method such as ATS is effective for ski training on the ski simulator for VI skiers.