A Comprehensive Review of Smart Wheelchairs: Past, Present, and Future

Abstract

Abstract-A smart wheelchair (SW) is a power wheelchair (PW) to which computers, sensors, and assistive technology are attached. In the past decade, there has been little effort to provide a systematic review of SW research. This paper aims to provide a complete state-of-the-art overview of SW research trends. We expect that the information gathered in this study will enhance awareness of the status of contemporary PW as well as SW technology, and increase the functional mobility of people who use PWs. We systematically present the international SW research effort, starting with an introduction to power wheelchairs and the communities they serve. Then we discuss in detail the SW and associated technological innovations with an emphasis on the most researched areas, generating the most interest for future research and development. We conclude with our vision for the future of SW research and how to best serve people with all types of disabilities.

Augmented Reality for Real-Time Navigation Assistance to Wheelchair Users with Obstacles’ Management

“…In [4], a smart wheelchair that can be controlled by gestures has been presented. As well [5] submitted a smart and powered wheelchair based on pattern recognition that could help users become more independent without much physical effort. According to many studies, the number of motor disabled people has been increasing worldwide and there should be solutions able to provide autonomy for wheelchair users.…”

Taking the eye road: A new access method for powered mobility in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

“…Independent control may be a highly desired feature for wheelchair users with ALS, but the truth is that even the best access method has its limitations. Enter the “smart wheelchair”—a power mobility device on which computer, sensors, and assistive technology are integrated . An intelligent wheelchair system would be able to assimilate throughput‐limited control offered by the user with information from multiple environmental cues.…”

“…Enter the "smart wheelchair"-a power mobility device on which computer, sensors, and assistive technology are integrated. 18 An intelligent wheelchair system would be able to assimilate throughput-limited control offered by the user with information from multiple environmental cues. Accessory sensors, such as global positioning system (GPS), accelerometry, odometry, cameras, scanners, and laser rangefinders, could enable such features as obstacle avoidance, following, localization, and navigation.…”

“…Accessory sensors, such as global positioning system (GPS), accelerometry, odometry, cameras, scanners, and laser rangefinders, could enable such features as obstacle avoidance, following, localization, and navigation. 18 Current PWC users who self-identified as potentially receiving benefit from smart wheelchair features were those with poor upper extremity control, orientation and reaction time, vision, and increased fatigue. 19 Users also identified a number of difficult driving situations that may benefit from automation, such as navigating crowded places, long distances, narrow environments, and backing up.…”

On the State Estimation of an Agonistic-Antagonistic Muscle System

“…As in [35], the standard backstepping procedure is employed to synthesize a virtual control input based on tendon force difference to setpoint-stabilize the load subsystem formed by (2) and (3). The constructive scheme is based on a Lyapunov function V that becomes negative-definite for the load subsystem under the synthetic control law.…”