- 1. Name three different types of sensors used in smart wheelchairs and explain the strengths and weaknesses of each.
- 2. John F. Kennedy said, “We choose to go to the moon,” in 1962, and the first manned moon landing occurred seven years later, in 1969. By comparison, one of the earliest peer-reviewed journal articles describing a smart wheelchair (Madarasz et al. 1986) was published in 1986, and smart wheelchairs are still not in general use. Does this mean it is harder to make a wheelchair that does not hit things than it is to send humans to the moon and back safely?
- 3. Describe how smart wheelchairs may be used to increase independent mobility.
- 4. Name three different types of input methods that have been explored with smart wheelchairs.
- 5. Name three different types of feedback modalities that have been used by smart wheelchairs.
- 6. If you could have a smart wheelchair or an exoskeleton (which provided independent mobility, the ability to traverse stairs, and the ability to manipulate objects), which would you choose? Why?