Organizational Unit:

Rehabilitation Engineering and Applied Research Lab (REAR Lab)

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https://hdl.handle.net/1853/71920

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Organizational Unit

School of Industrial Design

Organizational Unit

George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering

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Now showing 1 - 10 of 10

Wheelchair in-seat monitoring design considerations

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2022-10) Sprigle, Stephen ; Sonenblum, Sharon Eve ; Deshpande, Yogesh ; Jordan, Kathleen

Wheelchair in-seat activity trackers are developed to monitor and provide feedback about the pressure redistributing movements of wheelchair users, including weight shifts and other postural shifts that redistribute buttocks pressures. From a design perspective, in-seat activity trackers reflect myriad design decisions that impact performance, function, and usability. Many, if not all, of these decisions involve interconnections across system components, and can have significant impact on tracker operation and user-experience. Technology developers will have to manage many benefits and trade-offs that accompany design of each subsystem. Two documents were created based upon real-world use of in-seat trackers to briefly identify design criteria and constraints that should be considered.
Procedure to categorize wheelchair cushion performance using compliant buttock models

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2022-09) Sprigle, Stephen ; Deshpande, Yogesh

Purpose: Wheelchair cushion prescription often seeks to address tissue integrity in addition to other clinical indicators. Because hundreds of wheelchair cushion models are available, a benefit would result if cushions were classified in a more valid manner to help guide selection by clinicians and users. The objective of this research was to develop an approach to evaluate and classify wheelchair cushion performance with respect to pressure redistribution. Materials and methods: Two anatomically-based buttock models were designed consisting of an elastomeric shell that models overall buttock form and a rigid substructure that abstracts load-bearing aspects of the skeleton. Model shapes were based upon elliptical and trigonometric equations, respectively. Two performance parameters were defined, pressure magnitude and pressure redistribution. The pressure magnitude parameter compared internal pressure values of the test cushion to a flat foam reference material, resulting in three classifications, superior, comparable, and inferior. Surface sensors were used to distinguish cushions with high, moderate or low pressure redistribution performance. Ten wheelchair cushions were evaluated by both models using two loads that represent a range of body weights expected for 41–43 cm wide cushions. Results and Conclusion: A classification matrix is proposed using both models and performance parameters. Two cushions met criteria for the highest level of performance, and one cushion was deemed to have inadequate performance for therapeutic value. The proposed method has a sensitivity to discern differences, compatibility with different sized cushions, and a versatility in classification. As such, it stands as an improvement over existing classification approaches.
The Design of a Family of Parametric Anatomically-Based Compliant Buttock Models to Evaluate Wheelchair Cushion Performance - Fabrication Package

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2022-07) Deshpande, Yogesh ; Sprigle, Stephen

The evaluation of wheelchair cushion performance is of interest to a variety of stakeholders. Over the years, several buttocks models have been used to evaluate wheelchair cushion performance. These vary in design and purpose, and can be generally classified as either rigid or compliant. To date, published studies using buttock models have been limited to using a single size model. Thus, they were designed to evaluate one size of cushions. A need exists to define a series of models that can be used to evaluate cushions of varying sizes. The objective of this project was to develop a family of compliant buttock models that are based upon the anatomical parameters of persons with varying body sizes. This paper will detail the designs, describe the anatomical basis for the design and provide the rationale for the design decisions. Supplemental material includes greater detail; the full CAD files and model fabrication instructions are available in an open access repository for persons who wish to fabricate the models.
Assistive Technology Outcomes Measure (ATOM) v2.0

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2018) Sprigle, Stephen ; Harris, Frances
Survey of Users of Wheelchair Seat Elevators

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2017) Sprigle, Stephen

This is a technical report to document and share the data collected using an on-line anonymous survey of wheelchair users who use seat elevators..
Design of a Robotic System to Measure Propulsion Work of Over-ground Wheelchair Maneuvers

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2014) Liles, Howard ; Huang, Morris ; Caspall, Jayme ; Sprigle, Stephen

A wheelchair-propelling robot has been developed to measure the efficiency of manual wheelchairs. The use of a robot has certain advantages compared to the use of human operators with respect to repeatability of measurements and the ability to compare many more wheelchair configurations than possible with human operators. Its design and implementation required significant engineering and validation of hardware and control systems. The robot can propel a wheelchair according to pre-programmed accelerations and velocities and measures the forces required to achieve these maneuvers. Wheel velocities were within 0.1 m/s of programmed values and coefficients of variation (CV) < 2%. Torque measurements were also repeatable with CV <10%. By determining the propulsion torque required to propel the wheelchair through a series of canonical maneuvers, task-dependent input work for various wheelchairs and configurations can be compared. This metric would serve to quantify the combined inertial and frictional resistance of the mechanical system.
Low Profile Tension Seat for Wheelchair Users who Propel with One or Both Feet

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2012-03) Sprigle, Stephen
Clinical Application of Pressure Mapping

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2007) Sprigle, Stephen ; Davis, Kim
Methodology to Measure the Adjustability of Skin Protection Features of Wheelchair Cushions

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2007) Linden, Maureen ; Sprigle, Stephen
Research Priorities: Seating and Positioning

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2007) Sprigle, Stephen

The Wheeled Mobility State of the Science Conference, hosted by the mobilityRERC at the Georgia Institute of Technology, was a forum to identify and discuss important research topics. The Conference was configured around Breakout Groups which were assigned specific research topics. These topics were selected via dot-voting by Conference attendees. The charge to the Breakout Groups was simple, yet unattainable: “Configure your research topic into a research project”. They were provided with general guidelines to identify research questions, specific aims or hypotheses, significance, study design possibilities, recruitment considerations, measurement variables and tools, analysis considerations, and anticipated challenges. This article summarizes the discussions from the Seating and Positioning Breakout Groups. The four research topics selected for discussion were: Impact of a seating and mobility intervention, Defining a systematic clinical approach to cushion selection, Functional impact of wheelchair cushions, and Long term impact of sitting. One member of each Group documented the discussion and a summary presentation was made to all Conference attendees. The following synopses were compiled from the Group notes and presentation. They are presented in sequence and reflect variability in discussion, presentation and content. Some research topics were more amenable to the suggested guidelines than others.