Design and implementation of robotic system to transport disabled people

The use of robotics in human healthcare is growing interest. In most institutions, services provided to the elderly and disabled are unsatisfactory, mainly due to their dependence on human assistance. Utilizing robots will spare human work force and help decreasing the risk of infection; and subsequently, economizing on personnel and hygiene expenses. This paper discussed these issues in three points, in order to present a low cost autonomous robotic wheelchair design to transport the elderly and disabled within hospitals. First, a design of a robot was implemented on a small prototype. The robot was navigated using line-following with obstacle detection technique; which is economical, simple and easily executed. Second, a design of a robotic wheelchair was presented. The wheelchair was developed from manual wheelchairs used in hospitals after proper adjustments, and a design of two gearboxes has been proposed. Third, the advantage of using robotic wheelchairs inside hospitals was discussed by utilizing findings from previous studies. The robot prototype circuit was built using optical and ultrasonic sensors, two DC motors and L293D motor driver; and programmed with Atmega16L Microcontroller. The robot was able to follow a predetermined line-path and detect obstacles within an acceptable range.