Comparison of Manual, Automatic, and Voice Control in Wheelchair Navigation Simulation in Virtual Environments: Performance Evaluation of User and Motion Sickness
Mobility is essential for individuals with physical disabilities, and wheelchairs significantly enhance their quality of life. Recent advancements focus on developing sophisticated control systems for effective and efficient interaction. This study evaluates the usability and performance of three wh...
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MDPI AG
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Sensors |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/2/530 |
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| author | Enrique Antonio Pedroza-Santiago José Emilio Quiroz-Ibarra Erik René Bojorges-Valdez Miguel Ángel Padilla-Castañeda |
| author_facet | Enrique Antonio Pedroza-Santiago José Emilio Quiroz-Ibarra Erik René Bojorges-Valdez Miguel Ángel Padilla-Castañeda |
| author_sort | Enrique Antonio Pedroza-Santiago |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Mobility is essential for individuals with physical disabilities, and wheelchairs significantly enhance their quality of life. Recent advancements focus on developing sophisticated control systems for effective and efficient interaction. This study evaluates the usability and performance of three wheelchair control modes manual, automatic, and voice controlled using a virtual reality (VR) simulation tool. VR provides a controlled and repeatable environment to assess navigation performance and motion sickness across three scenarios: supermarket, museum, and city. Twenty participants completed nine tests each, resulting in 180 trials. Findings revealed significant differences in navigation efficiency, distance, and collision rates across control modes and scenarios. Automatic control consistently achieved faster navigation times and fewer collisions, particularly in the supermarket. Manual control offered precision but required greater user effort. Voice control, while intuitive, resulted in longer distances traveled and higher collision rates in complex scenarios like the city. Motion sickness levels varied across scenarios, with higher discomfort reported in the city during voice and automatic control. Participant feedback, gathered via a Likert scale questionnaire, highlighted the potential of VR simulation for evaluating user comfort and performance. This research underscores the advantages of VR-based testing for rapid prototyping and user-centered design, offering valuable insights into improving wheelchair control systems. Future work will explore adaptive algorithms to enhance usability and accessibility in real world applications. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9b89632a7d8846d8a80c0dc0d0ade37b |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1424-8220 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Sensors |
| spelling | doaj-art-9b89632a7d8846d8a80c0dc0d0ade37b2025-01-24T13:49:15ZengMDPI AGSensors1424-82202025-01-0125253010.3390/s25020530Comparison of Manual, Automatic, and Voice Control in Wheelchair Navigation Simulation in Virtual Environments: Performance Evaluation of User and Motion SicknessEnrique Antonio Pedroza-Santiago0José Emilio Quiroz-Ibarra1Erik René Bojorges-Valdez2Miguel Ángel Padilla-Castañeda3Instituto de Investigación Aplicada y Tecnología (InIAT), Universidad Iberoamericana, Ciudad de México C.P. 01376, MexicoInstituto de Investigación Aplicada y Tecnología (InIAT), Universidad Iberoamericana, Ciudad de México C.P. 01376, MexicoDepartamento de Estudios en Ingeniería para la Innovación (DEII), Universidad Iberoamericana, Ciudad de México C.P. 01376, MexicoInstituto de Ciencias Aplicadas y Tecnología (ICAT), Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad de México C.P. 04510, MexicoMobility is essential for individuals with physical disabilities, and wheelchairs significantly enhance their quality of life. Recent advancements focus on developing sophisticated control systems for effective and efficient interaction. This study evaluates the usability and performance of three wheelchair control modes manual, automatic, and voice controlled using a virtual reality (VR) simulation tool. VR provides a controlled and repeatable environment to assess navigation performance and motion sickness across three scenarios: supermarket, museum, and city. Twenty participants completed nine tests each, resulting in 180 trials. Findings revealed significant differences in navigation efficiency, distance, and collision rates across control modes and scenarios. Automatic control consistently achieved faster navigation times and fewer collisions, particularly in the supermarket. Manual control offered precision but required greater user effort. Voice control, while intuitive, resulted in longer distances traveled and higher collision rates in complex scenarios like the city. Motion sickness levels varied across scenarios, with higher discomfort reported in the city during voice and automatic control. Participant feedback, gathered via a Likert scale questionnaire, highlighted the potential of VR simulation for evaluating user comfort and performance. This research underscores the advantages of VR-based testing for rapid prototyping and user-centered design, offering valuable insights into improving wheelchair control systems. Future work will explore adaptive algorithms to enhance usability and accessibility in real world applications.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/2/530wheelchair user interfacesvirtual realityvoice controlnavigation performancenavigation systemsdaily life scenarios |
| spellingShingle | Enrique Antonio Pedroza-Santiago José Emilio Quiroz-Ibarra Erik René Bojorges-Valdez Miguel Ángel Padilla-Castañeda Comparison of Manual, Automatic, and Voice Control in Wheelchair Navigation Simulation in Virtual Environments: Performance Evaluation of User and Motion Sickness Sensors wheelchair user interfaces virtual reality voice control navigation performance navigation systems daily life scenarios |
| title | Comparison of Manual, Automatic, and Voice Control in Wheelchair Navigation Simulation in Virtual Environments: Performance Evaluation of User and Motion Sickness |
| title_full | Comparison of Manual, Automatic, and Voice Control in Wheelchair Navigation Simulation in Virtual Environments: Performance Evaluation of User and Motion Sickness |
| title_fullStr | Comparison of Manual, Automatic, and Voice Control in Wheelchair Navigation Simulation in Virtual Environments: Performance Evaluation of User and Motion Sickness |
| title_full_unstemmed | Comparison of Manual, Automatic, and Voice Control in Wheelchair Navigation Simulation in Virtual Environments: Performance Evaluation of User and Motion Sickness |
| title_short | Comparison of Manual, Automatic, and Voice Control in Wheelchair Navigation Simulation in Virtual Environments: Performance Evaluation of User and Motion Sickness |
| title_sort | comparison of manual automatic and voice control in wheelchair navigation simulation in virtual environments performance evaluation of user and motion sickness |
| topic | wheelchair user interfaces virtual reality voice control navigation performance navigation systems daily life scenarios |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/2/530 |
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