Affiliations: [a] Faculty of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Universiti Malaysia Pahang, Pekan, Malaysia | [b] Deparment of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering, The University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
Correspondence:
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Corresponding author: N.M. Abdul Ghani, Faculty of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Universiti Malaysia Pahang, 26600 Pekan, Malaysia. Tel.: +60 609 4246087; Fax: +60 609 4246111; E-mail:normaniha@ump.edu.my
Abstract: This paper presents investigations into the development
of modelling and control strategies for a multipurpose wheelchair as mobile
transporter for elderly and disabled people. The research is aimed at
helping people with physical weakness/disabilities in their upper and lower
extremities to move independently without human intervention. A novel
reconfiguration which allows multi-task operations in the same wheelchair
system with improved design is modelled in Visual Nastran 4D (VN4D)
software. A modular fuzzy logic control mechanism with integrated phases is
introduced for the overall operations and two-wheeled stabilization of the
wheelchair. It is shown that the proposed modular fuzzy control approach is
able to ensure system stability while performing multipurpose tasks such as
manoeuvrability on flat surfaces, stairs climbing (ascending and
descending), standing in the upright position on two wheels and
transformation back to standard four wheels with up to 50% less initial
torque in comparison to previous designs.
