Wheelchair assistive system with EMG

Abstract

In this technological development work, the design and construction of a device is presented which will operate a system of electric motors to support the movement of a wheelchair through the reading of signals by means of an electromyograph (EMG) in order to detect the effort made during displacement in a common wheelchair, the signal is conditioned in such a way that it detects only the effort made during this action, when closing the hand to hold the wheel and drive the rotation, without detecting movements such as simple muscle tension or normal arm movements. Considering that people with motor disabilities who use wheelchairs have to move for long distances and during the whole day, with this system the effort is reduced and it supports on paths with steep slopes when going up.