Wheelchair-mounted robotic arm to hold and move a communication device - final design
Barrett, G.; Kurley, K.; Brauchie, C.; Morton, S.; Barrett, S.
Biomedical Sciences Instrumentation 51: 1-8
2015
ISSN/ISBN: 0067-8856 PMID: 25996692 Document Number: 681876
At the 51st Rocky Mountain Bioengineering Symposium we presented a preliminary design for a robotic arm to assist an individual living within an assistive technology smart home. The individual controls much of their environment with a Dynavox Maestro communication device. However, the device obstructs the individuals line of site when navigating about the smart home. A robotic arm was developed to move the communication device in and out of the users field of view as desired. The robotic arm is controlled by a conveniently mounted jelly switch. The jelly switch sends control signals to a four state (up, off, down, off) single-axis robotic arm interfaced to a DC motor by high power electronic relays. This paper describes the system, control circuitry, and multiple safety features. The arm will be delivered for use later in 2015.