Prototype of Robotic Device for Mobility Assistance for the Elderly in Urban Environments.

Daniel Leite,Marley Vellasco,Karla Figueiredo

doi:10.3390/s20113056

Abstract

This study aims to develop a prototype of an autonomous robotic device to assist the locomotion of the elderly in urban environments. Among the achievements presented are the control techniques used for autonomous navigation and the software tools and hardware applied in the prototype. This is an extension of a previous work, in which part of the navigation algorithm was developed and validated in a simulated environment. In this extension, the real prototype is controlled by an algorithm based on fuzzy logic to obtain standalone and more-natural navigation for the user of the device. The robotic device is intended to guide an elderly person in an urban environment autonomously, although it also has a manual navigation mode. Therefore, the device should be able to navigate smoothly without sudden manoeuvres and should respect the locomotion time of the user. Furthermore, because of the proposed environment, the device should be able to navigate in an unknown and unstructured environment. The results reveal that this prototype achieves the proposed objective, demonstrating adequate behaviour for navigation in an unknown environment and fundamental safety characteristics to assist the elderly.

Highlights

Ageing of the population, which is already a reality in developed countries, has become increasingly present in developing countries, such as Brazil
In a guide published by the World Health Organization [5], several characteristics that a city must have to meet the needs of an elderly population are described
There is a gap generated by the curb of the sidewalk

Summary

Introduction

Ageing of the population, which is already a reality in developed countries, has become increasingly present in developing countries, such as Brazil. Support Foundation (FAPESP) [4], Alexandre Kalache, a doctor and public health researcher, warned about the need for public policies aimed at this new reality, citing the case of France. In a guide published by the World Health Organization [5], several characteristics that a city must have to meet the needs of an elderly population are described. The city should be adapted to mobility needs, such as wide sidewalks, low steps, proper signage, and smooth, level, non-slip surface pavements. Even in an adapted city, part of the elderly population makes use of locomotion assistance devices, such as walking sticks and walkers, because they may have some motor, cognitive, or visual impairment, or may desire greater comfort and safety when moving around

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion