Magnetic devices invented by a local high school student to help blind people cross the street and take the bus could be installed along Huaihai Road in the near future.
Guo Shuang, a grade 10 student at Shaanghai Oriental Century School, showed her invention to the media last week.
Her invention calls for buses and crosswalks to be installed with electromagnetic devices that can give off a signal that can be detected by a receiver installed in the white canes blind people use to get around.
Guo came up with the idea after surveying several local blind people in cooperation with the city's Blind Union.
The vast majority of those she talked to said their biggest headaches involved problems recognizing the numbers of buses and safely crossing the street.
With the magnetic pointed blind sticks and an emitting device, currently being researched by another local inventor, the blind can expect to recognize the buses and cross the streets without difficulty in the future.
Zhu Shuangliu, information office chief with the Shanghai Blind Union, was working on the emitting device to be installed on buses to send off signals informing the blind of the bus number.
Guo's invention won the first prize in Shanghai Youth Scientific Invention Contest in May and will compete for a nationwide contest next month on behalf of the city.
Local blind union has approved the feasibility of her design.
Now she only has to await authorization from experts with Luwan District to see her idea being carried out on Huaihai Road and hopefully in other parts of the city soon.
"There are nearly 133 kilometers of sidewalks for the blind in the city," said Zhang Meng of the Pudong New Area Disabled Persons' Federation. " The lanes are covered with tiles in round or square bulges to represent for walk and stop zones respectively."
The fact the devices are noise free is a big advantage, blind union officials said.
The city had to rethink plans to install speakers on street corners that emit a noise when it is safe to cross the street due to complaints from residents after two such speakers were set up on Nanjing Road.