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The MIT Intelligent Wheelchair Project
Developing a voice-commandable robotic wheelchair
MIT Tech TV
Vision: Designing Smart Wheelchairs of the Future
New engineering developments offer opportunities to develop smart wheelchair assistive technology that can
improve the lives of many people who use wheelchairs. In our work, we are designing tomorrow's intelligent
wheelchairs: we are developing a voice-commandable intelligent wheelchair that is aware of its surroundings
so that it can assist its user in a variety of tasks.
The goal of this smart wheelchair project is to enhance an ordinary powered wheelchair using sensors to
perceive the wheelchair's surroundings, a speech interface to interpret commands, a wireless device
for room-level location determination, and motor-control software to effect the wheelchair's motion.
The robotic wheelchair learns the layout of its environment (hospital, rehabilitation center, home, etc.) through a
narrated, guided tour given by the user or the user's caregivers. Subsequently, the wheelchair can move to any
previously-named location under voice command (e.g., "Take me to the cafeteria"). This technology is
appropriate for people who have lost mobility due to brain injury or the loss of limbs, but who retain speech. The
technology can also enhance safety for users who use ordinary joystick-controlled powered wheelchairs, by
preventing collisions with walls, fixed objects, furniture and other people.
We envision that a voice-commandable wheelchair could improve the quality of life and safety of tens of
thousands of users. Moreover, considerable health improvements and cost savings could accrue through the
reduction or elimination of collision-induced injuries such as wounds and broken limbs. We are currently working
closely with at The Boston Home, a specialized-care residence for adults with multiple sclerosis and other
progressive neurological conditions. Our efforts are inspired and motivated by the insights, feedback, and
needs of The Boston Home's residents, staff, and family members.
Our team of faculty, students, and researchers come from several departments (Aeronautics and Astronautics;
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science; Engineering Systems Division) and laboratories (the Computer
Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) and the MIT AgeLab) from across MIT. Our efforts in
developing this intelligent wheelchair span multiple domains, including robotics, artificial intelligence, machine
learning, human computer interaction and user interface design, speech recognition systems, and the role of
technology for people with disabilities and people who are getting older.
Additional Files
Demonstration video of narrated guided tour capability
Presentation at The Boston Home Open House, April 12, 2010 (PDF)
Selected Publications
Hemachandra, S., Kollar, T., Roy, N., Teller S., "Following and Interpreting Narrated Guided Tours", International
Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), Shanghai, China, 2011 (PDF)
Park, J., Charrow, B., Curtis, D., Battat, J., Minkov, E., Hicks, J., Teller, S., Ledlie, J., "Growing an Indoor
Localization System," MobiSys 2010 (PDF)
Kollar, T., Tellex, S., Roy, D., Roy, N., "Toward Understanding Natural Language Directions," HRI 2010 (PDF)
Doshi, F., Roy, N., "Spoken Language Interaction with Model Uncertainty: An Adaptive Human-Robot Interaction
System," Connection Science, November 2008 (PDF)
Doshi, F., Roy, N., "Efficient Model Learning for Dialog Management," HRI 2007 (PDF)
Selected Media Coverage
Wheelchairs that listen, The Boston Globe, April 26, 2010
MIT adds robotics, voice control to wheelchair, Mass High Tech, September 19, 2008
Associates
Sponsors: Microsoft, Nokia.
We gratefully acknowledge the support of Intel's University Program Office, and Intel's Software & Services
Group.
Interested Parties: The Boston Home, United States Department of Veterans Affairs.
Related Groups at MIT: OIL/BMG (team members), RVSN, CSAIL.
Team Members
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2. Nicholas Roy Seth Teller Bryan Reimer
Sachithra
Yoni Battat Finale Doshi
Hemachandra
William Li Javier Velez
Collaborators
Jim Glass, Director, MIT Spoken Language Systems Group
Don Fredette, Adaptive Technology Coordinator, The Boston Home
Past Team Members
Michael Mason (Visiting Scientist), Queensland University of Technology, Australia
Mish Madsen, Justin Colt, Minh Phan, Alex Lesman
Email us about this project: tbh @ csail dot mit dot edu.
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