Voice Operated Wheelchair for the Disabled

Assistive devices are available which allow persons with severe physical disabilities or aged to complete tasks independently. When the user has severe physical limitations, it may be advantageous to have an integrated control system where a single control interface such as joystick, voice recognition system, keypad etc,. are used to operate two or more assistive devices. These include wheelchairs, augmentative communication devices, computers and other devices that are controlled electronically. The advantages of integrated control is that these persons with limited motor control abilities can access several devices without assistance, and the user may or may not need to learn a different operating mechanism to activate these devices.

In this paper, the concept of robotic wheel chair activation using voice recognition system has been implemented. These wheelchairs provide unique mobility for the disabled and elderly with motor impairments.The voice Recognition Kit and the motor which drives the wheelchair is linked with each other wirelessly. The voice recognition Kit is programmed to identify nearly 20 different voice commands for controlling actions of the wheelchair.

This proposed voice operated wheelchair is dedicated to patients with tetraplegia, muscular dystrophy and congenital gait abnormalities. The design is consuming less power and is low weight.