User-driven human-machine interface configuration for a wheelchair with complex functionality

Conventional wheelchairs are limited in their manoeuvrability and adaptability. They can therefore not satisfy the needs of severely disabled users especially for vocational rehabilitation, where narrow office environments need to be handled. An omnidirectional wheelchair can provide additional functionality for the benefit of the user in five areas: high manoeuvrability, adaptable input devices, flexible and configurable user interface for task selection, path recording and retrieval capability, and sensorial assistance. A prototype of such a chair has been built within the TIDE-OMNI project and has been tested with several disabled users. Special attention has been given to the configurations and adaptations required to meet the needs of individual users. In addition to yielding encouraging results, these tests also gave interesting input for future developments.