Robotic walker for vision-impaired elderly being tested by VA
From: VA Research Currents - October, 2001

VA researchers in Pittsburgh and Atlanta are evaluating a high-tech walking
frame designed to promote mobility and independence for vision-impaired frail
elderly. The walker, known as the PAM-AID (Personal Adaptive Mobility Aid),
was launched commercially on Oct. 5 at a rehabilitation conference in Europe
by its manufacturer, Ireland-based Haptica. 

The walker weighs about 60 pounds and costs around $8,000. It uses robotics
and artificial intelligence to sense the environment and support and guide
its user. According to the manufacturer, the device "builds the functionality
of a guide dog into a robust walking frame."  

Rory Cooper, PhD, director of VA's Center for Wheelchair and Related
Technology in Pittsburgh, is lead investigator on a grant from Rehabilitation
Research and Development to evaluate the device. While Dr. Cooper bench-tests
the prototype from an engineering standpoint, Bruce Blasch, PhD, coordinator
of the Vision Research Program at the Center of Excellence on Geriatric
Rehabilitation at the Atlanta VA Medical Center, will lead a clinical trial
with 45 residents of an assisted-living facility. Dr. Blaschs team will test
the PAM-AID against a far less expensive, low-tech device known as the
Adaptive Mobility Device (AMD), developed by VA. Made of aluminum and
plastic, with no electronic circuitry, the AMD features two parallel canes in
a rectangular frame. "It's a better type of cane, more suitable to the
elderly," said Dr. Blasch about the AMD. "It requires very little dexterity,
which can be a problem for elderly with arthritis. They cant move a cane
back and forth. [The AMD] gives the user preview about the environment ahead
of him, which is what a blind person needs."  

The sophisticated PAM-AID, on the other hand, uses laser range finders, sonar
sensors, steering motors and a motion controller. These mesh with software
that recognizes "landmarks" such as turns and doorways and avoids obstacles.
The device audibly announces these decisional points to the user. When used
in automatic mode, the device senses which way the user wants to go, through
pressure on the handlebars, and gently steers in that direction.

http://www.cs.tcd.ie/PAMAID/
http://www.ipa.fhg.de/srdatabase/pamaid.html
http://link.springer.de/link/service/series/0558/bibs/1458/14580211.htm
http://link.springer.de/link/service/series/0558/papers/1458/14580211.pdf
http://www.discover.com/jan_00/breakrobot.html
