1,586 research outputs found
A Dynamic Localized Adjustable Force Field Method for Real-time Assistive Non-holonomic Mobile Robotics
Providing an assistive navigation system that augments
rather than usurps user control of a powered wheelchair
represents a significant technical challenge. This paper
evaluates an assistive collision avoidance method for a
powered wheelchair that allows the user to navigate safely
whilst maintaining their overall governance of the platform
motion. The paper shows that by shaping, switching and
adjusting localized potential fields we are able to negotiate
different obstacles by generating a more intuitively natural
trajectory, one that does not deviate significantly from the
operator in the loop desired-trajectory. It can also be seen
that this method does not suffer from the local minima
problem, or narrow corridor and proximity oscillation,
which are common problems that occur when using
potential fields. Furthermore this localized method enables
the robotic platform to pass very close to obstacles, such as
when negotiating a narrow passage or doorway
Learning Motion Predictors for Smart Wheelchair using Autoregressive Sparse Gaussian Process
Constructing a smart wheelchair on a commercially available powered
wheelchair (PWC) platform avoids a host of seating, mechanical design and
reliability issues but requires methods of predicting and controlling the
motion of a device never intended for robotics. Analog joystick inputs are
subject to black-box transformations which may produce intuitive and adaptable
motion control for human operators, but complicate robotic control approaches;
furthermore, installation of standard axle mounted odometers on a commercial
PWC is difficult. In this work, we present an integrated hardware and software
system for predicting the motion of a commercial PWC platform that does not
require any physical or electronic modification of the chair beyond plugging
into an industry standard auxiliary input port. This system uses an RGB-D
camera and an Arduino interface board to capture motion data, including visual
odometry and joystick signals, via ROS communication. Future motion is
predicted using an autoregressive sparse Gaussian process model. We evaluate
the proposed system on real-world short-term path prediction experiments.
Experimental results demonstrate the system's efficacy when compared to a
baseline neural network model.Comment: The paper has been accepted to the International Conference on
Robotics and Automation (ICRA2018
Assistive trajectories for human-in-the-loop mobile robotic platforms
Autonomous and semi-autonomous smoothly interruptible trajectories are developed which are highly suitable for application in tele-operated mobile robots, operator on-board military mobile ground platforms, and other mobility assistance platforms. These trajectories will allow a navigational system to provide assistance to the operator in the loop, for purpose built robots or remotely operated platforms. This will allow the platform to function well beyond the line-of-sight of the operator, enabling remote operation inside a building, surveillance, or advanced observations whilst keeping the operator in a safe location. In addition, on-board operators can be assisted to navigate without collision when distracted, or under-fire, or when physically disabled by injury
Optimal path-following control of a smart powered wheelchair.
This paper proposes an optimal path-following control approach for a smart powered wheelchair. Lyapunov's second method is employed to find a stable position tracking control rule. To guarantee robust performance of this wheelchair system even under model uncertainties, an advanced robust tracking is utilised based on the combination of a systematic decoupling technique and a neural network design. A calibration procedure is adopted for the wheelchair system to improve positioning accuracy. After the calibration, the accuracy is improved significantly. Two real-time experimental results obtained from square tracking and door passing tasks confirm the performance of proposed approach
Empowering and assisting natural human mobility: The simbiosis walker
This paper presents the complete development of the Simbiosis Smart Walker. The device is equipped with a set of sensor subsystems to acquire user-machine interaction forces and the temporal evolution of user's feet during gait. The authors present an adaptive filtering technique used for the identification and separation of different components found on the human-machine interaction forces. This technique allowed isolating the components related with the navigational commands and developing a Fuzzy logic controller to guide the device. The Smart Walker was clinically validated at the Spinal Cord Injury Hospital of Toledo - Spain, presenting great acceptability by spinal chord injury patients and clinical staf
Powered Wheelchair Platform for Assistive Technology Development
Literature shows that numerous wheelchair platforms, of various complexities, have been developed and evaluated for Assistive Technology purposes. However there has been little consideration to providing researchers with an embedded system which is fully compatible, and communicates seamlessly with current manufacturer's wheelchair systems. We present our powered wheelchair platform which allows researchers to mount various inertial and environment sensors, and run guidance and navigation algorithms which can modify the human desired joystick trajectory, so as to assist users with negotiating obstacles, and moving from room to room. We are also able to directly access other currently manufactured human input devices and integrate new and novel input devices into the powered wheelchair platform for clinical and research assessment
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