Echolocation

• Science behind it
  • Source emits sound waves, and listens for their reflections by objects in their surroundings. Based on what the reflected waves, or echoes, sound like, the animal or device understands its environment.
• Animals that use echolocation
  • emit high-frequency sound pulses beyond the range of human hearing.
  • Bats – have poor eyesight and use echolocation to hunt and navigate in the dark
  • Dolphins – use it to locate objects and communicate underwater.
  • Other species – Whales, tawny oilbirds, swiftlets and the tenrec
• Application
  • Sonar
    • acronym for ‘sound navigation and ranging’
    • widely used for underwater navigation, communications
  • Radar
    • acronym for ‘radio detection and ranging’
    • used in aviation, weather forecasting, and military applications, to detect and track objects by bouncing radio waves off them.
  • help people with visual impairments

developed smartphone apps that can create a map of a room to help people with visual impairments navigate their environs better