This paper describes and evaluates an intelligent
wheelchair, adapted for users with cognitive disabilities and
mobility impairment. The study focuses on patients with cerebral
palsy, one of the most common disorders affecting muscle control
and coordination, thereby impairing movement. The wheelchair
concept is an assistive device that allows the user to select arbitrary
local destinations through a tactile screen interface. The
device incorporates an automatic navigation system that drives
the vehicle, avoiding obstacles even in unknown and dynamic
scenarios. It provides the user with a high degree of autonomy,
independent from a particular environment, i.e., not restricted
to predefined conditions. To evaluate the rehabilitation device, a
study was carried out with four subjects with cognitive impairments,
between 11 and 16 years of age. They were first trained
so as to get acquainted with the tactile interface and then were
recruited to drive the wheelchair. Based on the experience with
the subjects, an extensive evaluation of the intelligent wheelchair
was provided from two perspectives: 1) based on the technical
performance of the entire system and its components and 2)
based on the behavior of the user (execution analysis, activity
analysis, and competence analysis). The results indicated that the
intelligent wheelchair effectively provided mobility and autonomy
to the target population.
