Virtual Assistance for Daily Living: Neurophysiological and Functional Effects in Low Vision

Participants with low vision and matched controls will complete walking, navigation, information gathering, and object identification / reaching tasks in both controlled laboratory and real-world environments. Throughout these tasks, physiological measures (e.g., electrodermal activity, heart rate, brain activity, eye movements), biomechanical data (e.g., gait, posture, limb movements), and cognitive metrics will be collected. VIS4ION will be specifically evaluated for its potential to improve the low vision users' scene understanding, navigation efficiency, increase physical activity (e.g., step count, moderate-equivalent minutes), and contribute to improved outcomes in terms of health, awareness, cognitive load, and safety. Study tasks include obstacle negotiation, dual-task walking, and object identification / reaching under varying conditions (indoor vs. outdoor; with vs. without VIS4ION). A subset of participants will use VIS4ION over extended periods to assess its impact on activities in daily life in real-world settings.