Wheelchair control system for the disabled based on EMOTIV sensor gyroscope

Abstract

In this study, a wheelchair control system (WCS) was designed and constructed that utilizes an EMOTIV gyroscope sensor for comfortable wheelchair movement. The proposed WCS involves an electroencephalograph (EEG), DC motors, an electronic wheelchair, a microcontroller, and a laptop. The control system algorithm is bulit in Arduino microcontroller using C++ language. The WCS comprises 15 states and is dependent on head motions. There are 12 motor speed settings and eight wheel rotary radius cases. The WCS was tested by 10 women and men aged between 20 and 70 years. The system was implemented and tested in both indoor and outdoor environments to represent smooth and rough surfaces. It was also evaluated at various directions and speeds as well as at rotational radii (interior and exterior areas), and it prevented collisions with barriers using an ultrasonic sensor and reduced the wheelchair movement response time. The control system algorithm achieves an average response time of approximately 1–2 s to move the wheelchair in the specified direction. The performance metrics were also investigated and included sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy with encouraging results: The average WCS accuracy is 99.16%, sensitivity is 99.2%, and specificity is 99.15%. The overall performance is approximately 98%. The accuracy and response times of this WCS outperforms previous research findings.