A virtual reality simulator to help new users learn safe practice and operation of powered wheelchairs
The overall objective of the study is to co-design a high-fidelity VR wheelchair simulator for diverse body. It uses participatory design to engage local communities with alternate-abilities for the development of a wheelchair training simulator with multimodal input interfaces for wheelchair guidance and control. Simulated and virtual reality (VR) training allows users to practice difficult or stressful tasks in a safe environment. The virtual environment will integrate joystick, muscle signals (EMG), and eye gaze (EOG). Aesthetic attributes of the simulator such as color, texture, and layout will be considered to enhance the overall visual experience, making the user experience more enjoyable and appealing. The simulated environment includes standardized hospital or home; variable environments with changing obstacles such as shopping centers or workplaces.
Standard power wheelchair training is considered inadequate by clinicians and users due to insufficient means to evaluate user performance in varying environments. Virtual environment training offers a promising alternative by providing users with more practical opportunities while reducing the time demands on clinicians. However, there is a need to further explore and optimize game design elements and strategies to ensure engaging and effective training experiences for a diverse range of users. This paper presents our progress of WheelUp!, an open-source electric wheelchair virtual reality (VR) simulator. The simulator offers modularity for clinician-controlled difficulty adjustment, immediate visual and audio feedback, and a visualization tool to aid in clinical assessment and monitoring of progress. This is the first step to building an interactive platform to address the inadequacy of wheelchair training.
@inproceedings{chen2023wheelup,author={Chen, Max and Xu, Yihong and Sirois, Alexander and Li, Yichen and Dempski, Robert and Smith, Gillian and Oda, Yuko and Telliel, Yunus and Lewis, Erika S. and Wolkowicz, Kelilah L.},booktitle={2023 IEEE Conference on Games (CoG)},title={WheelUp! Developing an Interactive Electric-power Wheelchair Virtual Training Environment},year={2023},pages={1-6},keywords={Training;Visualization;Navigation;Wheelchairs;Virtual environments;Games;Tutorials;Power Wheelchair Training;Virtual Reality (VR);Virtual Environment;Training Game},doi={10.1109/CoG57401.2023.10333203}}
