Jalopnik
Researchers at Lehigh University are developing a way to make it easier for wheelchair-bound individuals to dock a wheelchair in the back of a minivan. The system utilizes lasers and radio frequency technology to automatically guide a wheelchair onto the forklift-style platform that is in the rear of the van. This is similar to how the spacecraft Jules Verne docked with the International Space Station or how my Roomba robotic vacuum will automatically dock with its charging cradle.
Researchers at Lehigh University are developing a way to make it easier for wheelchair-bound individuals to dock a wheelchair in the back of a minivan. The system utilizes lasers and radio frequency technology to automatically guide a wheelchair onto the forklift-style platform that is in the rear of the van. This is similar to how the spacecraft Jules Verne docked with the International Space Station or how my Roomba robotic vacuum will automatically dock with its charging cradle.The researchers integrated this system into a Chrysler minivan and it has proved to be successful 97 percent of the time including in difficult situations like on gravel and in the rain. [New Scientist]
Comments
Dubious distinction. Like the guy who runs into the Olympic stadium to finish the marathon in 10 hours, long past dark with all the crowd gone home.
R2D2 did this 30 years ago.
that's great and all, but i think that i'd prefer to have my lasers geared toward obliterating other vehicles.
If you can't walk, and are sitting in your van, how screwed are you the 3% of the time that it doesn't dock? What is "plan B"?
@NICKNICK: I like my lasers mounted on sharks.
jules verne was a pimp.
@smalleyxb122: That's what I was thinking. She says "it can still be put away manually", but if the person was able to do that, this entire process is unnecessary.
Why don't they just make a lift ramp in the back and let the disabled person just load up with the chair into the van? I'm sure some engineer can work out a way to safely attach the chair and occupant for transport once loaded in the van.
@TheTooth:
Most wheelchair van conversions do it this way - but this approach is designed to allow the chair occupant to also be the driver.
@Phil L.: Even better! Why ride when you could drive?
Maybe we should just make the wheelchair itself capable of highway speeds and put a license plate on it... why bother with the van at all?
where's my frickin wheelchair with "lay-zer beams?" throw me a frickin bone here!
@abgwin: I'm the boss-man, need the info!
Since no one else seems to have pointed it out, it must have been on Gizmodo where I saw this last week.
smalleyxb122: Plan B is where your fellow humans, A) laugh hysterically at you, then B) load it up by hand once they've caught their breath.
I wanna know about the 3% fail--did it steer the wheelchair out into traffic? Ram the van?
@TRAVIS You have a Roomba? Does it work well? Seriously.
@Novaload: Yeah, I was actually thinking it looks exactly like a Roomba docking.
We have a Roomba Discovery 4296. It runs automatically everyday at 7, then goes back and charges itself. It works perfectly, gets all the dog hair off the rugs and everything. We normally will stick it in another room sometime through the day too so it can clean. In the living room and kitchen at least, we haven't used our "real" vacuum in a few months, and the floors, even the corners, are really clean.
We got it for $100 at Woot.com
Best $100 you could spend. It's been really reliable too... you have to clean it pretty well every so often(We have 5 to 10 dogs, so we clean it every day), but if you don't have a lot of hair on the floor you could probably let it go a few days without cleaning.
@Novaload: Thought the same thing. That three percent could be hilarious.
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