The Wheelchair Electrification System with Direct Drive Motor Active Caster

Abstract

In recent years, a “declining birthrate and aging population” is believed to cause a chronic shortage of labor in the fields of medical care and caregiving. Therefore, manual wheelchairs and electric wheelchairs are commonly used as means of mobility in medical or caregiving facilities and daily mobility assistance for pedestrians. However, the disadvantages of manual wheelchairs include the strain on the arms when moving, and the risk of falling and the difficulty of carrying an electric wheelchair. Therefore, to solve these problems, this research proposes incorporating a differential mechanism into an active castor that has an omni-directional movement function to improve the operating rate of the motor. Additionally, by mounting a new active castor equipped with a suspension function on a manual wheelchair in a detachable state. To verify that the manual wheelchair is electrically powered, we conducted verification of straight-line propulsion and on the spot turning drive methods.