henry said on 2012/12/10 at 3:29 pm
i have heard that the ultra-cane is back on the market, but when i looked at the rnib website shop under electronic mobility aids i cannot find it. does anyone know where i can order one from please. i cannot remember the name of the company that makes them. i had thought that the rnib shop would sell most things. i have emailed them to ask if they are selling it but have not heard back yet. thank you in advance to anyone who can help. best. henry.
Julie A Davies said on 10/12/2012 at 3:29 pm
I thought I would just respond to some of the points that have been raised here about the UltraCane. And although they are just comments and people's opinions, it is always useful to know what the manufacturer has to say about their product and so here is our response.
The UltraCane doesn't stop anyone wanting to explore their surroundings, you personally have the choice to walk into an object or walk around it. Many people don't want to walk into "street furniture" or other obstacles, in fact one of our users said she was so fed up with walking into bags of rubbish on the street, that this was the main reason she purchased an UltraCane. I should point out, that those who use guide dogs, also don't walk into obstacles and neither do they explore obstacles in their path, they just walk passed them with their dogs.
Someone also mentioned here that the UltraCane does not allow you to follow landmarks within your surroundings and that is just not true. In fact the UltraCane will detect all obstacles in your path and it can help you find objects and landmarks that you may not have even known were there. One user told us that he located a postbox using the UltraCane which he had never realised was in his street. Some other users have told us that they find walking down the street far more interesting using the UltraCane because they have learned so much more about their environment by using it rather than using a long white cane.
The "NEW" UltraCane can be used in the rain as our customers will tell you. It was the previous model that could not be used in the rain. Plus it detects obstacles from the ground to above your head so your whole body is fully protected from anything that you may have walked into using a long cane. One customer told us that whilst using a long cane, he knew that his forward path was clear, but then he walked into a lorry door which had been left open by the driver because he had no way of knowing that this obstacle was in his vicinity. He now uses an UltraCane and is extremely grateful for it.
We have made many improvements to the UltraCane, it is a very accurate obstacle detector and it is very easy to use. You can even do shorelining with it. Why not read some testimonials from happy customers on our website or contact us and we will put you in touch with users who will be only to keen to speak to you about the UltraCane.
The cost of the UltraCane is £635 and not £700 and we offer easy payment schemes as well as looking for grant funding and we offer training in the use of the UltraCane and for those mobility officers who are keen to be made aware of new devices for mobility.
At the end of the day, its about offering people a choice, some prefer to have a long white cane, some prefer to have a guide dog and for those others, then the UltraCane is another choice for them.
DJP_1996 said on 17/11/2012 at 11:11 am
I'm hearing that the ultra canes are in interest of some partialy sighted people. Let me shine some light on this, I've never used one but from what I've heard about it and it's cost I would quicker not use any cane at all than use an ultra cane. Disadvantages: can't explore what's in your way, can't follow land marks which is one the most important things within mobility and moving around town, can't use it when it's raining. And there are much more disadvantages to it, I would advise you to stick with the basic long cane, that's what I'm using and even tho I'm walking into things some times, I just have a laugh about it and keep going. I hope you find this advice useful.
Kind regards.
Hubert.
frankie webb said on 16/11/2012 at 11:30 am
hello henry. I consider myself to be a person who is interested in all aspects of technology and who is prepared to try new things. one of the things i have tried is the ultra-cane. there are really no advantages to one of these over a normal long cane. in fact, I would go as far as to say that there are many disadvantages to an ultra-cane. one of these is that it doesn't allow you to explore the obstacle in front of you. it vibrates when you are a little way away from it so as to warn you that an object is approaching. Personally i want to know what it is that's in my way. Due to the fact that the ultra-cane tells you what is coming up before you get to it means you may miss important landmarks due to the fact that you've moved away from it because you are listening to the vibration of the cane. Another disadvantage is the price. £700! In my opinion that is absolutely scandalous. ok. the ultra-cane stops you from walking into things, but so what? Even sighted people walk into things sometimes, and they probably have a good laugh about it. why should we as blind or partially sighted individuals be any different? If u really want an ultra-cane fare enough, but please considder all these points about the ultra-cane which have been made on this forum before shelling out £700
whatever you decide, let us know how you got on. I hope you find something that suits you.
all the best
Frankie webb. .
frankie webb said on 16/11/2012 at 1:18 am
tthe short answer to that is there aren't any. The urtra-cane is no better than a normal long cane. I tried one once, didn't like it. I like to know what obstacles are coming up. The urtra-cane doesn't allow you to do this because it vibrates when you are a long distance away from the object in question. some people may say that's the ideaof an ultra-cane but is it? i don't think so. because when a cane hits something when you are out and about, youwill surelyknow to stop and navigate your way around whatever itis that'sin your way. also, it can lead to people getting lost. for example, let's suppose you are in a building which you haveen't bbeen into before and u are usinggan ultra-nocane. there is a door coming up, but you don't gothrough it because the cane vibrates so you move out of the way, when you should have gone "this thedoor in the first place. "people of doeveloping goodcanne skillsisabout exploringthe obstacle and find out what it is. £700 for this peace of equipment is nothing more than scandalous.
Blind tech user said on 15/11/2012 at 11:42 pm
Hello,
The best thing to do I think would be use a normal white cane then by the iGlasses from RNIB for £79 rather than paying 700 for an ultra cane. They're what I use.
All they are is you put them on like a normal pair of sunglasses and use them along with your came and when the iGlasses detect an obstacle at head or chest hight they start to vibrate.
I tried out an ultra cane a couple of years ago and if I had a choice I'd still go for the iGlasses. Have a look at them on the RNIB shop.