The VAHM robotized wheelchair: System architecture and human-machine interaction

In the smart wheelchair field the research problematics consists in applying methods coming from mobile robotics to navigation assistance for people with motor disabilities. In this paper we detail the constraints and the specificities of this application. From this study we deduce the need to obtain a cooperation between the human operator and the machine in order to achieve a mobility task. To illustrate this purpose, we describe a mobile robot architecture which facilitates task and information sharing and trading between man and machine.