Electronic control for a wheel-chair guided by oral commands and ultrasonic and infrared sensors

This paper describes a wheelchair for physically disable people. In this wheelchair, a dependent-user recognition voice system and ultrasonic and infrared sensor systems have been integrated. In this way, the wheelchair can be driven whit oral commands and with the possibility of obstacle avoidance and downstairs or hole detection. The wheelchair allows autonomous driving (for example following walls). This project has been developed in the Electronic Department of the Alcala University and it has been financed by the ONCE Foundation. The electronic control system we have built allows an easy and handy driving with the only use of the human voice. The system drives itself through structured environments (hospitals, rehabilitation centers and so on). System structure is in a way that is possible to add more features, easy and economically (like appliance control, door opening and closing and other telecontrol, etc.).