Tactile Interface to Steer Power Wheelchairs: A Preliminary Evaluation with Wheelchair Users

Power Wheelchairs can be a necessity for many people to have a certain level of mobility. Unfortunately, some of them may not be able to use one because they cannot safely manipulate a joystick. In a previous study, we proposed a tactile interface to steer power wheelchairs and started a first round of experimentation with able-bodied users. In this paper, we present recent tests of our steering interface in both formal and informal settings with some users with mobility impairment from different profiles. In the formal tests, two wheelchair users performed three different common tasks: straight line following, 90° corner and doorway passing with both our tactile steering interface and a joystick. The steering performance of the tactile interface was close or similar to that of the joystick. We also outline lessons that we learned from these tests for future improvements.