[Paper Review] A Tele-Presence Wheelchair for Elderly People.

Jiajun Shen, Bin Xu+2 more|arXiv (Cornell University)|Jan 22, 2016

Gaze Tracking and Assistive Technology25 references3 citations

TL;DR

This paper proposes a tele-presence wheelchair that enhances elderly mobility and social interaction by integrating a tele-presence robot, intelligent wheelchair, and a smart pad-based TIUI interface. The system enables remote operation via touch-based control on a live video feed, allowing caregivers to guide the wheelchair intuitively, with preliminary results showing improved user experience in tele-operation and communication.

ABSTRACT

This paper presents the architecture and implementation of a tele-presence wheelchair based on tele-presence robot, intelligent wheelchair, and smart pad TIUI technologies. The tele-presence wheelchair is just a commercial electric wheelchair equipped with a tele-presence interaction system. The tele-presence interaction system is an add-on module which consists of three parts: tele-presence, tele-operation imaging, and user interface. The tele-presence part is mounted on the front of the wheelchair for an elderly person to communicate with family members through video and voice. The tele-operation imaging part captures the live video for tele-operation and semi-autonomous navigation. The user interface developed in our lab for a smart pad [12] is the TIUI, which allows an operator to directly touch and push the wheelchair image in the live video of a remote environment as him/her to do in the presence. This paper also discusses the preliminary evaluation of the user experience.

Motivation & Objective

• To address the isolation and mobility challenges faced by elderly individuals in home or care settings.
• To develop a low-cost, accessible solution that combines tele-presence and remote operation for elderly users.
• To enable caregivers to remotely control a wheelchair using a natural, touch-based interface on a smart pad.
• To improve user experience through real-time video interaction and intuitive tele-operation.

Proposed method

• Equipping a commercial electric wheelchair with a tele-presence interaction system as an add-on module.
• Integrating a front-mounted tele-presence unit for video and voice communication with family members.
• Using a tele-operation imaging system to capture live video for remote navigation and semi-autonomous control.
• Implementing the TIUI (Touch-based Interaction Interface) on a smart pad to allow operators to touch and push the wheelchair image in real-time video to control movement.
• Designing the user interface to mimic physical interaction, enabling intuitive remote control as if present in the environment.
• Combining tele-presence, tele-operation, and user interface components into a cohesive system architecture.

Experimental results

Research questions

• RQ1 How can a tele-presence wheelchair improve social interaction and emotional well-being for elderly users?
• RQ2 To what extent does the TIUI interface enable intuitive and effective remote control of a wheelchair?
• RQ3 How does the integration of tele-presence and tele-operation enhance user experience in elderly care?
• RQ4 What are the usability and practicality challenges of deploying such a system in real-world environments?

Key findings

• The tele-presence wheelchair successfully enables real-time video and voice communication between elderly users and family members.
• The TIUI interface allows operators to control the wheelchair by touching the live video feed, mimicking physical interaction.
• Preliminary evaluation indicates improved user experience in remote operation and social engagement.
• The system demonstrates the feasibility of integrating tele-presence, tele-operation, and intuitive user interfaces into a single, accessible platform for elderly care.