Development of a wheelchair stability assessment system: Design tools and approaches

Louise Moody, Paul Magee, Dimitar Stefanov

    Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapterpeer-review

    5 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    This chapter describes how design has been applied to the development of a system for supporting the prescription of wheelchairs. With an ageing population there is likely to be a continued rise in wheelchair usage, as well as wheelchair modifications for specific needs such as specialist seating and the addition of assistive devices. Ensuring the ease of use, stability, safety and performance of wheelchairs both occupied by, and attended to by older adults is an important consideration. This chapter describes the design methods employed in the development of WheelSense ®, a system for use by wheelchair prescribers to support the assessment, adaptation and tuning of wheelchairs to meet individual needs. The system development has required a multidisciplinary approach bringing together designers, engineers, human factors specialists, clinical specialists alongside end-users and stakeholders. The resulting WheelSense ® system combines electronics and a weighing system in a folding platform. It is supported by a handheld device and graphic user interface (GUI) for guiding the prescription process, enabling data entry and to support education of the wheelchair user chair.

    Original languageEnglish
    Title of host publicationDesign of assistive technology for ageing populations
    EditorsAndree Woodcock, Louise Moody, Deana McDonagh, Ajita Jain, Lakhmi C Jain
    PublisherSpringer
    Pages235-256
    Number of pages22
    ISBN (Print)978-3030262914
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - Jan 2020

    Publication series

    NameIntelligent Systems Reference Library
    Volume167
    ISSN (Print)1868-4394
    ISSN (Electronic)1868-4408

    Bibliographical note

    Funding Information:
    The Wheelchair Stability Assessment System (Wheel-SAS) project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Invention for Innovation (i4i) stream (Grant II-AR-0209-10099.)

    Funding

    FundersFunder number
    Birmingham Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
    King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
    National Institute for Health and Care Research
    Coventry University
    Invention for InnovationII-AR-0209-10099

      Keywords

      • Interdisciplinary design
      • Load-cell
      • Optimising wheelchair performance
      • Stability assessment
      • User-centred design
      • Wheelchair prescription

      ASJC Scopus subject areas

      • General Computer Science
      • Information Systems and Management
      • Library and Information Sciences

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