JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION
Jurnal Sains Sosial dan Pendidikan Teknikal 1(1) (2020), 53-59
Electric Wheelchair Controlled by Joystick and Android/iOS Smartphone
(Pengendalian Kerusi Roda Elektrik Menggunakan Kayu Bedik dan Telefon Pintar (Android/iOS))
HAIDIE BIN INUN, CAROLINE DAME SIAGIAN, *SHALIZAN BIN KADIR, BENNY AZMI BIN MOHD
ZAMLAN, SYAHLAN ABD HALIM
Department of Electrical Engineering, Politeknik Kota Kinabalu
Abstract
A wheelchair is used by people who are difficult to walk because of having physical problems,
injuries, or disabilities. There are many options and different types of wheelchairs such as manual
wheelchairs, electric wheelchairs, and scooters depending on the patient’s financial ability,
physical limits, and strength. Not all people with movement disabilities have enough strength
especially elders. Moreover, there is no wheelchair controlled by smartphones currently available
in the market and even custom-made electric wheelchairs are very expensive. Therefore, the main
objective of this project is to provide a solution to this matter by modifying an existing manual
wheelchair that would use smartphones (android/iOS) and joystick to control its movement. So,
the rationale of this project is it can help patients with movement difficulty to move easily with
significantly at a lower cost. Implementation of this project will be using System Development
(SDLC) Life Cycle methodology that divide the complex task into several phases of development.
This project will be divided into two parts, namely the implementation of hardware and software.
The main hardware of this system consists of Arduino microcontrollers and motors that can be
controlled using a smartphone via Bluetooth module and joystick. Ultrasonic sensors are located
on the rear of this wheelchair to detect objects or obstacles and buzz the buzzer so that the person
who uses it can be acknowledged when there are objects behind during reverse movement. The
software part will consist of Arduino programming using Arduino Integrated Development
Environment (IDE) software and mobile apps programming using Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT) App Inventor software. In the end, the implementation of this project can be
used in universities, companies, hospitals, and at home as well to facilitate someone's movement
without having to rely too much on help from others. In conclusion, this project is expected can
help the disability and elder to move freely and control the electric wheelchair by themselves
independently.
Keywords: Electric Wheelchair, Smartphone, Arduino, Joystick
Received: June 26, 2020; Accepted: August 14, 2020; Published: October 20, 2020
© 2020 PKS. All rights reserved.
* Corresponding author: shalizan@polikk.edu.my
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JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION
Jurnal Sains Sosial dan Pendidikan Teknikal 1(1) (2020), 53-59
INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND
A wheelchair is a tool that was built to make disabled people easier to move and it is also
used by people who are difficult to walk because of having physical problems, injuries, or
lack of physical stamina. Therefore, the wheelchair can be classified as a type of medical
equipment to improve access for people with mobility problems. The most common
wheelchair can be controlled by the user in a sitting situation by moving the wheel using
their hands. However, this wheelchair also has the handling at the back for others to help
to move it. Nowadays there are many options and different types of wheelchairs such as
manual wheelchairs, electric wheelchairs, and scooters, but they are classified as either
manually or electrically.
PROBLEM STATEMENT
Nowadays, there are many types of helping tools available in the market. Helping tools for
movement usually depending on the users, such as their physical limits and stamina. Not
all people with movement disabilities have enough strength especially elders. So, it is hard
for elders to find a suitable tool to help them move around. Therefore, we want to modify
an existing wheelchair that would use the Android/iOS app and joystick to control its
movement. People with disabilities will feel easy to use these wheelchairs because this
wheelchair using only a smartphone app and a joystick to control it. Moreover, there is no
wheelchair controlled by smartphones currently available at the market. Other than that,
the most custom-made electric wheelchair is expensive.
OBJECTIVE
This study embarks on the following objectives:
i. To modify the normal/manual wheelchair and allows it to be controlled using a
joystick for those who have problems with movement.
ii. To modify the normal/manual wheelchair that can be controlled using a
smartphone.
iii. To detect obstacles using an ultrasonic sensor to prevent accidents.
iv. To test the maximum inclines, angle, and load of the proposed system.
LITERATURE REVIEW
A wheelchair is a tool that was built to make people with disabilities easier to move. While
we call the wheelchair a “modern invention,” its history can be traced back through
thousands of years (PA Healthcare, 2016). Today, there are several different wheelchair
design models, but they are basically classified as either manual or electrical (Ahmad
Muhaimin, 2012).
The use of an electrical wheelchair leads to a large amount of independence for persons
with a physical disability who can neither walk nor operate a mechanical wheelchair alone
(Lodhi et al., 2016). There are previous projects/products regarding electrical wheelchair
that has been carried out such as voice-controlled wheelchair (Lodhi et al., 2016; Jamuna,
Kumar, & Karthikeyan 2015) and wheelchair with gesture recognition (Vishal, V.P et al,
2014), Based on the review that has been done, a few disadvantages have been identified
for the previous project.
Based on the review for the voice-controlled wheelchair (Lodhi et al., 2016; Jamuna et al.,
2015), it has been identified that it is only suitable for indoor use. Since the project used
voice to give the command to the microcontroller, it is difficult to detect the voice
command if there are many humans or ambient voices. A review on the electrical
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JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION
Jurnal Sains Sosial dan Pendidikan Teknikal 1(1) (2020), 53-59
wheelchair with gesture recognition (Vishal et al., 2014) identifies that even it has very
high maneuverability, it is significantly high cost.
A study on the theory of components, circuits, and past projects that have been carried
out reveals that we can use newer technology to control the wheelchair. The latest
technology that can be used is using the smartphone app to control the wheelchair
movement via Bluetooth connection. As we know that almost every one of us can afford
to have at least one smartphone. This is the main advantage of this project which is
upgrading and improving the capability in controlling the motor using smartphones
combining with the joystick as another option to control the movement.
METHODOLOGY
The system is developed using the System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) methodology
as shown in Figure 1 below. This life cycle is to divide the work of a complex system into
several phases of development. It allows complex work more easily understood and
controlled. Each phase in the SDLC has different properties and each contains a unique
work development. This life cycle methodology can help illustrate important management
processes and procedures for achieving unparalleled decisions in development applications.
Figure 1. Project Development Methodology
RESULT & ANALYSIS
MODEL DESIGN
The wheelchair is designed by modifying the existing wheelchair currently available in the
market. The design consists of two 24 Volt DC wiper motors attached to both rears wheels
to control the movement of the wheelchair. The joystick is put in the right arm frame but
can easily move to the left arm frame in case left-hand users are using it. Smartphone
holders are put beside the wheelchair frame which can be easily moved up in front of the
user chair. The circuit and battery case are put behind the electric wheelchair to give more
balance and easy for maintenance purposes such as for recharging or changing the battery
and troubleshooting the circuit. Battery capacity required is about 24V, 14.4Ah, and power
needed for motors is about 450W. The total setup weighs approximately 50kg and its
weight capacity is within 100 –120kg. The design concept of the wheelchair is shown in
Figure 2.
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JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION
Jurnal Sains Sosial dan Pendidikan Teknikal 1(1) (2020), 53-59
Figure 2. Design Concept
CONTROL SYSTEM
The main controller for this project is using Arduino. Arduino device is paired with a
Bluetooth module that communicates with a smartphone to move the wheelchair-using
android/iOS app. The same concept applies to control the wheelchair movement through
Joystick, where Arduino devices are paired with the Joystick through Bluetooth connection.
Bluetooth module also relates to Arduino devices and relay module to control the motor
movement and makes both left and right motors functional. The relay module and
Bluetooth module connections are connected through the Arduino development board.
Arduino also uses to control the output for the buzzer, where the signal input is taken from
the ultrasonic sensor. An overview of the component’s connections is shown in Figure 3.
Figure 3. Design concept
MOBILE APP INTERFACE
The android/iOS application is build using the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
App Inventor. It is an online intuitive, visual programming environment that allows
everyone to build fully functional apps for smartphones and tablets. The mobile interface
is divided into 3 sections. The first section shows the institution logo, second section the
Bluetooth connection button, and the third section the control button area. For the control
button area, it has button-up, button-down, button left, button right, and stop button as
shown in Figure 4. The Electric wheelchair can be controlled just by pressing the interface
control area button through the smartphone. Each button serves to control the movement
of the wheelchair in its respective direction. The smartphone is connected to a wheelchair
through Bluetooth technology with a maximum range of about 15m. An additional interface
that shows the info for the developer is also available.
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JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION
Jurnal Sains Sosial dan Pendidikan Teknikal 1(1) (2020), 53-59
Figure 4. Mobile app interface
ANALYSIS
The testing performance including “Weight Vs Speed” to analyze the capability of the motor
to carry users according to their weight at full speed and the capability of the motor to
carry users through a steep environment. However, for safety purposes, we limit the motor
full speed to 40% only from its maximum actual speed. To test the effectiveness of the
prototype, volunteers were asked to become a part of the testing of the prototype. Each
volunteer with different weight was asked to ride the Electric Wheelchair at the full speed.
The result then is plotting on the Graph. Motor output “Weight vs. Speed” graph is shown
in Figure 5.
Figure 5. Mobile app interface
The second test is to test the capability of the Electric wheelchair to carry the user moving
through a steep road, and the maximum load it can carry. From this test, this “Electric
Wheelchair” can carry user through 25°- 30° steep, with an average weight 80kg without
any real problem. The maximum load for this wheelchair is limited to 100kg for safety
purposes even though it can reach to 120kg load.
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Jurnal Sains Sosial dan Pendidikan Teknikal 1(1) (2020), 53-59
Figure 6. Incline Testing
Cost analysis is needed to ensure this project is within the budget. The total cost is shown
in Table 1. Based on the survey, this is one of the low-cost Electric wheelchairs that
currently available at the market.
Table 1. Cost analysis table
Component Cost (RM)
1 Wheelchair Frame 250
2 Motor 600
3 Crank 56
4 Chain 36
5 Custom Joystick 20
6 Arduino MEGA 230
7 Motor Driver 250
8 Box 30
9 Battery Charger 220
10 Battery 186.8
11 Control Cable 15
12 Power Cable 60
13 Switch 11
14 2 Way plug socket kit (Male & Female) 36
15 DC to DC converter 39
16 Terminal connector 20
17 Material (aluminum bar, pipe, rubber gasket, bold and nut, etc.) 250
18 Other electric & electronics part 50
Total 2359.8
FUTURE RECOMMENDATION
After testing this project there are several suggestions that can be made. The suggestions
are:
i. To make a safety belt in this wheelchair for safety purposes.
ii. If the sensor detects obstacles, the buzzer will buzz, and the wheelchair will also
automatically stop.
iii. Further improvement on the Breaking system to make it is more efficient.
iv. To add speed control both on the joystick and smartphone app.
CONCLUSION
The proposed electric wheelchair concept will benefit the disabled as well as the elderly to
help their movement more easily. The technology used is the latest technology, simple
and the cost required is also quite affordable. It is hoped that the studies of this electric
wheelchair will open more space and opportunities for us to explore further the latest
technology to help those in need.
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REFERENCES
Ahmad Muhaimin Ismail (2012). Design and analysis of wheelchair in term of daily usage.
UMP Family Caregiver Alliance, Pahang.
Jamuna, R., Kumar, K. B. & Karthikeyan, P. (2015). Wheelchair control using voice
recognition. International Journal of Advanced Research in Biology, Ecology,
Science and Technology, 1(1), 13-16.
Lodhi, D. K., Vats, P., Varun, A., Solanki, P., Gupta, R., Pandey, M.K. & Butola, R. (2016).
Smart electronic wheelchair using Arduino and Bluetooth module. International
Journal of Computer Science and Mobile Computing, 5(5), 433-438, 2016.
National Institute of Child health and Human Development (2016). What are some types
of assistive devices & how are they used? Retrieved from
https://www.nichd.nih.gov/health/topics/rehabtech/conditioninfo/device
PA Healthcare (2016). The history of the wheelchair. Retrieved from
https://www.pamedsupply.com/2016/12/22/the-history-of-the-wheelchair/
Vishal V. P., Nikita S.U., Darshana P. M., Nikita R. I., & Pragati P. M. (2014). Hand gesture-
based wheelchair movement control for disabled person using MEMS. Journal of
Engineering Research and Applications, 4(4), 152-158.
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