Power apparatus for wheelchairs
First Claim
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1. A system for collision-free mechanical transportation comprising:
- (a) a wheeled mechanism;
(b) means to detect forces applied to the wheels of said wheeled mechanism;
(c) at least one sensor capable of detecting obstacles in the environment;
(d) means to alter forces applied to said wheels of said wheeled mechanism; and
(e) a controller that (i) receives and processes information about the forces applied to said wheels of said wheeled mechanism and about obstacles in the environment from said sensor;
(ii) determines the risk of collision with obstacles; and
(iii) alters the forces applied to said wheels to avoid said risk of collision.
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Abstract
The disclosed invention used power-assist wheelchair hubs and an array of sensors to provide obstacle-avoidance features on a wheelchair. In a power-assisted manual wheelchair, the traditional rear wheels are replaced with motorized hubs that magnify the force applied to the rear wheels by the user. The present invention uses sensors to detect obstacles and drop-offs near the wheelchair, and uses the power-assist hubs to alter wheelchair movement in response to these sensor readings.
48 Citations
18 Claims
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1. A system for collision-free mechanical transportation comprising:
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(a) a wheeled mechanism;
(b) means to detect forces applied to the wheels of said wheeled mechanism;
(c) at least one sensor capable of detecting obstacles in the environment;
(d) means to alter forces applied to said wheels of said wheeled mechanism; and
(e) a controller that (i) receives and processes information about the forces applied to said wheels of said wheeled mechanism and about obstacles in the environment from said sensor;
(ii) determines the risk of collision with obstacles; and
(iii) alters the forces applied to said wheels to avoid said risk of collision. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A power-assisted manual wheelchair comprising:
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(a) means to detect forces applied to the pushrims of power-assisted wheels to determine the user'"'"'s desired direction and speed of travel’ (b) at least one sensor capable of detecting obstacles and voids in the environment;
(c) means to control the motor and brakes of said power-assisted wheels; and
(d) a controller that (i) receives and processes information about the forces applied to said wheels of said wheeled mechanism and about obstacles in the environment from said sensor;
(ii) determines the risk of collision with obstacles; and
(iii) alters the forces applied to said wheels to avoid said risk of collision.
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18. A power-assisted manual wheelchair comprising:
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(a) means to detect forces applied to the pushrims of power-assisted wheels to determine the user'"'"'s desired direction and speed of travel;
(b) a plurality of sensors capable of detecting obstacles and voids in the environment wherein such sensors are taken from the group of ultrasound sensors, infrared sensors, laser range finder sensors, touch sensitive sensors and imaging based sensors;
(c) means to control the motor and brakes of said power-assisted wheels; and
(d) a controller that (i) receives and processes information about the forces applied to said wheels of said wheeled mechanism and about obstacles in the environment from said sensor;
(ii) determines the risk of collision with obstacles; and
(iii) alters the forces applied to said wheels to avoid said risk of collision.
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Specification