Enhanced safety and automated wheelchair for patients with mobility disability: a case study of mount Meru referral hospital, Arusha, Tnzania

Abstract

Physical disability remains a challenging problem in Tanzania. The number of people with physical disabilities is increasing every day for a variety of reasons. A wheelchair is one of the devices that assists these people in their daily lives. Various wheelchair designs have been developed, but the prevailing issue is that the existing systems continue to fall short of meeting the needs of the users. There is a great need for a design that can meet some of these people's needs, with safety as a top priority. To address these issues, the study intends to develop an enhanced safety and automated wheelchair for patients with mobility disabilities. The proposed system was a solar-powered wheelchair with some unique safety features for wheelchair users. The wheelchair was built with a joystick for mobility, an MQ-2, a Global System of Mobile communication (GSM), a Global Positioning System (GPS), an Ultrasonic sensor, a buzzer, a pushbutton, a solar panel, a lead-acid battery, and an Atmega 328P processor. Based on some of the previously mentioned important components, the system was able to detect fire once by making a sound via the buzzer, and family members were able to obtain any message if the wheelchair user was in danger simply by pressing the push button. Furthermore, the system was capable of tracking location based on wheelchair user consent and detecting obstacles within a 10cm range. The newly built prototype has a quick response time while maneuvering around with the joystick, and solar power can last for less than 3 hours