New Hands-Free Wheelchair Developed

posted on Aug 11 by Amelia in the Disability News, Health, Technology, Wheelchair Accessibility, Wheelchair Technology category

A new hands-free wheelchair has been developed at the University of South Florida that has an origin in dancing, and researchers hope to make it available to everyone within the next year or two.

The hands-free wheelchair allows the user to control the wheelchair using themselves much like a joystick. Based on where the user is leaning, the chair will react and move in that direction using sensors mounted underneath the chair. To go forward, the rider leans forward, to go backwards, the user leans back.

The idea came from Merry Lynn Morris from the school’s theater and dance department 4 years ago. Morris was dancing with the mixed ability dance company and noticed that standard wheelchairs were far from ideal for theater. Dancers have to use their hands on the wheels for moving the wheelchair instead of being free for other uses such as self expression.

Morris worked on a new hands-free wheelchair with the school’s center for assistive and rehabilitation robotics technologies. The chair has been patented, and students are already working on a next generation prototype. They hope that the new chair will eventually be sold to those who need wheelchair for everyday activities and not just for dancing.

This hands-free wheelchair will be very useful for users including those that do not have the arm strength or use of both arms to maneuver around easily. Along with Morris, six students are listed as holding the co-patent on the design. The hope is to have a sellable hands-free wheelchair in a year or two.