[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv id=\u0022republish_modal_form\u0022\u003E\u003Cform class=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form ecl-form\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 action=\u0022\/en\/article\/modal\/7038\u0022 method=\u0022post\u0022 id=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 accept-charset=\u0022UTF-8\u0022\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizon articles can be republished for free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EYou must give appropriate credit. We ask you to do this by:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 1) Using the original journalist\u0027s byline\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 2) Linking back to our original story\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 3) Using the following text in the footer: This article was originally published in \u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003EHorizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003ESee our full republication guidelines \u003Ca href=\u0027\/horizon-magazine\/republish-our-stories\u0027\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EHTML for this article, including the attribution and page view counter, is below:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-form-item form-item js-form-type-textarea form-item-body-content js-form-item-body-content ecl-form-group ecl-form-group--text-area form-no-label ecl-u-mv-m\u0022\u003E\n \n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Ctextarea data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 aria-describedby=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 id=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 name=\u0022body_content\u0022 rows=\u00225\u0022 cols=\u002260\u0022 class=\u0022form-textarea ecl-text-area\u0022\u003E\u003Ch2\u003ERobotic arms and temporary motorisation \u2013 the next generation of wheelchairs\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003EProfessor Nicol\u00e1s Garc\u00eda-Aracil from the Universidad Miguel Hern\u00e1ndez (UMH) in Elche, Spain, has developed an automated wheelchair with an exoskeleton robotic arm to use at home, as part of a project called \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/rcn\/194307\/factsheet\/en\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003EAIDE\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIt uses artificial intelligence to extract relevant information from the user, such as their behaviour, intentions and emotional state, and also analyses its environmental surroundings, he says.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe system, which is based on an arm exoskeleton attached to a robotised wheelchair, is designed to help people living with various degrees and forms of disabilities carry out daily functions such as eating, drinking, and washing up, on their own and at home. While the user sits in the wheelchair, they wear the robotised arm to help them grasp objects and bring them close \u2014 or as the whole system is connected to the home automation system they can ask the wheelchair to move in a specific direction or go into a particular room.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIts mechanical wheels are made to move in narrow spaces, ideal for home-use, and the system can control the environment remotely \u2013 for example, switching lights on and off, using the television or making and answering phone calls. What\u2019s more, it can\u0026nbsp;anticipate the person\u2019s needs.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018We can train artificially intelligent algorithms to predict what the user wants to do,\u2019 said Prof. Garc\u00eda-Aracil. \u2018Maybe the user is in the kitchen and wants a drink. The system provides their options (on a monitor) so they can control the exoskeleton to raise the glass and drink.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EMultimodal system\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe technology isn\u2019t simple. As well as the exoskeleton robotic arm attached to the robotic wheelchair, the chair has a small monitor and uses various sensors, including two cameras to recognise the environment, voice control, eye-tracking glasses to recognise objects, and sensors that capture brain activity, eye movements and signals from muscles.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EDepending on each person\u2019s needs and disabilities, the multiple devices are used accordingly. For example, someone with a severe disability such as a cervical spinal cord injury, who wouldn\u0027t otherwise be able to use voice control, could use the brain activity and eye movement sensors combined.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003E\u2018We can train artificially intelligent algorithms to predict what the user wants to do.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003EProf. Garc\u00eda-Aracil, Universidad Miguel Hern\u00e1ndez, Spain\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe user wears a cap on their head, filled with electrodes, to record the brain\u2019s activity which controls the exoskeleton hand\u2019s movement, explains Prof. Garc\u00eda-Aracil. So when the user sees themself closing their hand onto an object for example, the exoskeleton arm actually does it for them. This technology is called brain-neural-computer interaction (BNCI), where brain \u2014 as well as muscle \u2014 activity can be recorded and used to interact with an electronic device.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBut the system can sometimes make mistakes so there is an abort signal, says Prof. Garc\u00eda-Aracil. \u2018We use the horizontal movement of the eye, so when you move your eyes to the right you trigger an action, but when you move your eyes to the left you abort that action,\u2019 he explains.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe AIDE prototype was successfully tested last year by 17 people with disabilities including acquired brain injury (ABI), multiple sclerosis (MS), and spinal cord injury (SCI), at the Cedar Foundation in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Its use was also demonstrated at UMH in Elche, with the user asking to be taken to the cafeteria, then asking for a drink, and drinking it with the help of the exoskeletal arm.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ENow more work needs to be carried out to make the system easier to use, cheaper and ready for the market, says Prof. Garc\u00eda-Aracil.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBut it\u2019s not just new high-tech wheelchairs that can increase the functionality for users. Researchers on the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/rcn\/212363\/factsheet\/en\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003EFreeWheel\u003C\/a\u003E project are developing a way of adding motorised units to existing wheelchairs to improve their utility in urban areas.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018Different settings have different challenges,\u2019 said project coordinator Ilaria Schiavi at IRIS SRL in Torino, Italy. For example, someone with a wheelchair may struggle to go uphill or downhill without any physical assistance whilst outdoors. But this system could allow people using wheelchairs to have an automated\u0026nbsp;wheelchair experience\u0026nbsp;regardless of whether they are indoors or outdoors, she says.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ERentable \u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe motorised units would attach to manual wheelchairs people already have in order to help them move around more easily and independently, Schiavi explains. These could either be rented for short periods of time and tailored according to the location \u2014 an indoor or outdoor environment \u2014 or bought, in which case would be completely personalised to the individual.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe researchers are also developing an app for the user which would include services such as ordering a bespoke device to connect the wheelchair and the unit, booking the unit, controlling it, and planning a journey within urban areas for shopping or sightseeing.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018You have mobility apps that allow you to book cars, for example. Our app will allow the owner of a wheelchair to firstly subscribe to the service, which would include buying a customised interface to use between their own wheelchair and the motorising unit they have booked,\u2019 said Schiavi.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018A simple customised interface will allow wheelchair users to motorise their exact device, as it is used by them, at a reasonable cost.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ECustomisation is made possible through additive manufacturing (AM) technologies, she says. AM technologies build 3D objects by adding materials, such as metal or plastic, layer-by-layer.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESchiavi and her colleagues are exploring various uses for the motorised units and next year, the team plans to test this system with mobility-impaired people in both Greece and Italy. They hope that, once developed, they will be made available like city bicycles in public spaces such as tourist attractions or shopping centres.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EThe research in this article was funded by the EU. 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