Perfect Electric Wheelchair (subjective)

[stevember]

Hi all,

The components I'm going to be talking about collaboration that might produce some limited edition chairs. Very early stages, take it with a pinch of salt at this point. Just managing expectations.

If I was to ask you to list what optional extras or features the perfect wheelchair would have what would they be? Yes, go crazy money no object.

This is my quick list.

• GPS tracking system.
  
  • Screen with map, tracks journeys speed and distance.
  • Upload to a website.
• Higher speeds and distance.
  
  • Legal speed 8 mph, with an option of extra for private land.
  • 50+ miles on a single charge.
• The screen bright and big enough to read outdoors.
  
  • A touch sensitive.
  • Video display to show behind the chair.
• Updated controller.
  
  • Deal with indicators without taking a handoff the joystick. I'm thinking two quick tap right indicator on. Stopping on the road to put your indicators on is a nightmare.
• Fast USB chargers, 4×40 watt minimum.
• Lights that light up the road and not just a token gesture.
• Active suspension with different modes.
  
  • Soft – those days when you are in pain and you cannot deal with the bumps.
  • Medium – the normal days.
  • Hard – those days when you Wanna fill those bumps and have a sports feel.
• Sensors on the tyre pressures.
• Complete detail about batteries, distance, wattage, temperature.
• Wi-Fi aerial that just needs a Sim card for mobile Wi-Fi.
• Raise, tilt.
• Leg bag emptier. (I made my own under £25 from parts Amazon)
• Water dispenser with long straw. Or a place to hold a water bladder.

Of course these are my thoughts I just love being out and about in the Cornish countryside.

Of course I can do the tracking system on my mobile, I can also get the information for my batteries. I can add many of these things myself and have done so. But it would be nice to have these things as part of the chair and integrated properly.

[Burgerman]

The components I'm going to be talking about collaboration that might produce some limited edition chairs. Very early stages, take it with a pinch of salt at this point. Just managing expectations.

If I was to ask you to list what optional extras or features the perfect wheelchair would have what would they be? Yes, go crazy money no object.

Not sure all of this list are really wheelchair parts. For e.g leg bag emptyer? Anyway...

GPS tracking system.
Screen with map, tracks journeys speed and distance.
Upload to a website.

Not sure why we would need that?
If interested I use a phone or in y case my laptop as its much more capable and flexible. 99% of the time I wouldnt use or want it. Yes subjective...

Higher speeds and distance.
Legal speed 8 mph, with an option of extra for private land.
50+ miles on a single charge.

Speed 8mph is already available. Faster I already have!
But yes RANGE.
When it comes to range the only solution is safe lifepo4 for us. And 50 miles isnt enough. Why? Because a chair with 20 mies (like most) only do this when on flat ground at constant speed. I can kill a "20 mile range" battery in y driveway clearing up eaves in an hour or so. And I have not actually gone anywhere yet!
As such the target which is a balance between weight and range is around 230Ah which gives a "range" of around 100 real world miles. And fitting a smaller pack with less miles means hat you are wasting the potential of lithium and that includes a 1 to 2 decade long service life. Charging in winter maybe weekly, low average depth of discharge etc. So 100 miles and 230Ah are targets. That we ALREADY do.

The screen bright and big enough to read outdoors.

Yep, like the CJSM2 from PG Drives.

A touch sensitive.

Cant stand touch screens. They do stuff you dont want, and end up al greasy prints. So no! (subjective I know...)

Video display to show behind the chair.

AS LONG as it uses the joystick screen, and doesent add paraphenalia. Yes! Been saying this for years.

Updated controller.
Deal with indicators without taking a handoff the joystick. I'm thinking two quick tap right indicator on. Stopping on the road to put your indicators on is a nightmare.

I dont use indicators. But on the CJSM2 i can already operte them while driving using a forefinger. And frequently do to turn the damned things off after I notce that they have been knocked and are on...

Fast USB chargers, 4×40 watt minimum.
Lights that light up the road and not just a token gesture.
Active suspension with different modes.
Soft – those days when you are in pain and you cannot deal with the bumps.
Medium – the normal days.
Hard – those days when you Wanna fill those bumps and have a sports feel.
Sensors on the tyre pressures.

Dont need any of that. Just more to fail.

Complete detail about batteries, distance, wattage, temperature.

What specifically?

Wi-Fi aerial that just needs a Sim card for mobile Wi-Fi.

Wifi antennas are minute and can just be a single wire inside the pod of 21.5mm
Mobile phone antennas are similar, and just as small. My laptop has both wifi and mobile internet. That could be built into the joystick pod. But what for?

Raise, tilt.

Already have lift, tilt, recline, power centre mount footrest etc. That adds 100KG approx to a 100KG chair. So I have 3 chairs without all that as they feel and erform way better. And 2 with it for when I need that.

Leg bag emptier. (I made my own under £25 from parts Amazon)

I have one. She is called Jessica.

Water dispenser with long straw. Or a place to hold a water bladder.

I have a cold bag, insulated hanging on the cair with and coke in it. Dont need a straw. (subjective!)

Of course these are my thoughts I just love being out and about in the Cornish countryside.

Of course I can do the tracking system on my mobile, I can also get the information for my batteries.

What information and what battery? Because theres almost non that is useful really other than knowing when a cell starts to drop right at the last 1% of your charge. And if you fit the 230Ah cells, with 100 miles range then that will never happen unless you drive full speed non stop for 16 hours!

Whats needed is choice. I would want some of those things. But eually I would dislike having many of them. So its hard to understand how to buld a chair thats going to be a good idea for most users.

[martin007]

Hi all,

The components I'm going to be talking about collaboration that might produce some limited edition chairs. Very early stages, take it with a pinch of salt at this point. Just managing expectations.

If I was to ask you to list what optional extras or features the perfect wheelchair would have what would they be? Yes, go crazy money no object.

This is my quick list.

• GPS tracking system.
  
  • Screen with map, tracks journeys speed and distance.
  • Upload to a website.
• Higher speeds and distance.
  
  • Legal speed 8 mph, with an option of extra for private land.
  • 50+ miles on a single charge.
• The screen bright and big enough to read outdoors.
  
  • A touch sensitive.
  • Video display to show behind the chair.
• Updated controller.
  
  • Deal with indicators without taking a handoff the joystick. I'm thinking two quick tap right indicator on. Stopping on the road to put your indicators on is a nightmare.
• Fast USB chargers, 4×40 watt minimum.
• Lights that light up the road and not just a token gesture.
• Active suspension with different modes.
  
  • Soft – those days when you are in pain and you cannot deal with the bumps.
  • Medium – the normal days.
  • Hard – those days when you Wanna fill those bumps and have a sports feel.
• Sensors on the tyre pressures.
• Complete detail about batteries, distance, wattage, temperature.
• Wi-Fi aerial that just needs a Sim card for mobile Wi-Fi.
• Raise, tilt.
• Leg bag emptier. (I made my own under £25 from parts Amazon)
• Water dispenser with long straw. Or a place to hold a water bladder.

Of course these are my thoughts I just love being out and about in the Cornish countryside.

Of course I can do the tracking system on my mobile, I can also get the information for my batteries. I can add many of these things myself and have done so. But it would be nice to have these things as part of the chair and integrated properly.

You have components left over...

[Burgerman]

Which?

[martin007]

The screen bright and big enough to read outdoors.
Sensors on the tyre pressures.
Wi-Fi aerial that just needs a Sim card for mobile Wi-Fi

[Burgerman]

Sim cards dont do wifi. Wifi is 2.4 and 5ghz local short range. Your phones youe cell towers and completely different system. Wifi also need paswords etc so only much use at home. My laptop has both wifi and mobile internet so works anywhere like your phone.

[slomobile]

GPS tracking system.
Screen with map, tracks journeys speed and distance.
Upload to a website.
Updated controller.
Deal with indicators without taking a handoff the joystick.
The screen bright and big enough to read outdoors.
Active suspension with different modes.
Sensors on the tyre pressures.
Complete detail about batteries, distance, wattage, temperature.
Wi-Fi aerial that just needs a Sim card for mobile Wi-Fi.
integrated properly.

Elements of all those features (not necessarily components) are included in the "user interface". The easiest way to achieve that user interface in a collaborative way is probably by using a handheld PC, or other touchscreen computer as the base component of the user interface.

It isn't necessary to require a specific exact computer, but a specific reference system should be chosen to represent the required platform (Hardware: x86_64, aarch64, RISC-V) (OS: Linux flavor, Win, Mac, IOS, Android, BSD flavor, ReactOS, Haiku) (Development Tools: VS code, Eclipse, strictly text w/manual compile, makefile, ROS, ROS2) (Language: Lua Script, Python, C, C++, C#, Rust, Java, Javascript, NodeJS) (GUI Toolkit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_widget_toolkits ) (Movement Libraries: very dependent on other choices. Probably need to be custom developed starting with Lenny's script as a guide)

Narrowing those choices down and reaching consensus among your collaborators may be difficult. Often, system designers choose to avoid nailing down those details and the result is fractured, divisive, frustrating development that is impossible to build for regular people.

An easy choice might be Raspberry Pi 5(aarch64), Raspian OS, VS code, C, GTK, Arduino compatible realtime microcontroller libraries.
Or perhaps substitute Python and TKinter instead of C and GTK.
That is underpowered for semiautonomous navigation routines which are my top desired feature.
I've had lots of roadblocks with desirable libraries existing with ports only for X86_64.
NVIDIA Jetson ecosystem is a great platform, but it relies heavily on NVIDIA proprietary binary software which Linus hates. Thus custom kernels.
ROS2 has a great constellation of software already written for it, but a nightmare learning curve.
If you want to be as Open Source as possible and have full control of all hardware without legacy dreck. (RISC-V, realtime bare metal, makefile, Rust, ?GUI?, ?movement?)
Or pick Streamdeck as your hardware and let that dictate all your other choices.
Or another handheld. Lenovo Legion Go, ROG Ally, etc.
Or specify any X86_64 mini PC and let the user choose their preferred touchscreen and joystick.

I'm working on a Lenovo SE30 Ubuntu w/5Gmodem and IOBOX because it is Intel, fanless, 24v, has Thunderbolt, multiple ethernet, multiple serial ports, 24v IO ports.

[slomobile]

ReactOS is a windows compatible open source OS. I'm not sure if it will run the Rnet windows software and Rnet dongle. If it does, it might be a good choice as it has some good tutorial about how to get started developing for ReactOS and it is familiar in the way Windows used to be.

[martin007]

ReactOS isn't yet in beta stage...

[Burgerman]

It will always be beta. If that. Probably Alpha.