There are wheelchairs for disabled children and adults, but what about infants? Babies lack the coordination and fine motor skills needed to drive powered wheelchairs. Engineers at the University of Ithaca have developed a infant robot wheelchair that is guided by a Wii balance board. An infant seat is attached to the robot so the baby has a place to sit. When the baby reaches for something, the Wii balance board senses the direction that he is leaning in and the robot moves in that direction. The robot uses a sonar detector to keep from bumping into things and has an override joystick for a therapist or parent to use.
This robot is a great idea. Handicapped babies have no way to get around and must depend on older people to carry them to where they want to go. There are wheelchairs for children as young as three, but require the use of a joystick, something an infant can't use. As soon as the baby is able to sit up, they can operate the robotic wheelchair. Using this robotic wheelchair allows the baby to gain independence and to explore their surroundings better than they ever could before. The robot relies on one things that babies can do easily, leaning, and does not rely on their weakness, limited dexterity. The robo-chair was used in a study with several babies and all of the babies responded well to the chair and mastered how to control it.
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