Mechatronic Transfer Wheelchair Based on SLAM, A*/DWA Algorithms, and Finite Element Safety Assurance

With the acceleration of population aging, the number of disabled older people is increasing, and the demand for home care is also rising. In the case of a narrow space and no gap between the bed and the ground, the transfer of patients between the wheelchair and the bed has become a challenge. Current solutions suffer from bulky designs, require caregiver assistance, and pose potential safety risks. In order to solve the above problems, this paper proposes an intelligent transfer wheelchair with voice interaction and autonomous navigation function. The wheelchair innovatively adopts a cantilever transfer device, which can enable safe and stable transfer without requiring bed-floor clearance, and has the dual functions of a wheelchair and a transfer device, effectively saving family space. The stability of the structure is verified by finite element analysis. Under the action of a 500 N load, the maximum stress and maximum displacement are within the safety limit of the material. The wheelchair is also equipped with an advanced human-computer interaction system with voice interaction and autonomous navigation functions. Users can control the operation of the wheelchair through voice. The navigation module of SLAM and the hybrid A*/Dynamic Window Approach (DWA) path planner realizes the high-precision docking of the wheelchair and the bed. The results show that the design can realize the safe transfer of disabled people between wheelchair and bed, and provide a solution for home intelligent nursing.