At least one blind person has developed a high level of proficiency in echolocation using tongue clicks. However, the clicking tongue is a single emitter. The VIPER device provides multiple emitters oriented in different directions to allow a mosaic image to be formed from multiple sectors of echo information, enhancing overall spatial perception.

Self-consciousness of making clicking sounds with one's tongue can discourage persons from making tongue clicks. The electronically generated acoustic pulses of the VIPER device can avoid such self-consciousness by attributing the sound to the device, not the user, similar to way those who are uncomfortable singing karaoke are generally comfortable listening to music from other sources.

http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-19524962

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) provides an amazing way to study the portions of the brain involved in various human activities in real time. Scientists have used fMRI to study human echolocation in early and late blind echolocation experts.

http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0020162