Smart wheelchair perception using odometry, ultrasound sensors, and camera

This paper deals with the perception mode of smart wheelchairs. First we evoke the many mobility aid prototypes developed in rehabilitation robotics by considering the point of view of perception. Then we describe the localization mode of the VAHM**. We show how the odometric, ultrasound, and vision sensors are used in a complementary way in order to locate the wheelchair in its known environment. The mode of adjustment of the odometric position by the least-squared method using ultrasonic measurements is detailed. Then the use of vision to perceive the vertical segments of the environment so as to refine the orientation is presented. The results of the tests carried out on the wheelchair are given and commented