Modeling and simulation of a moving robotic arm mounted on wheelchair

Abstract

Wheelchairs equipped with fixed positioned robotic arms is proposed to help paralyzed people. However, such a configuration makes it hard for the users to orient the wheel chair such that the task in need lies within the arm workspace. In this work a robotic arm that slides over a track mounted over a wheelchair is proposed to attain much wider workspace, at no extra complexity of arm design. Proposed design also reliefs the need to orient the wheelchair for extra user comfort. This work represents the Kinematic equations, Dh-parameters and dynamic modeling & simulation of an RRR robotic arm moving along a path built onto a wheelchair including the 3D workspace of the system. Preliminary results show robotic arm can achieve a very dexterous workspace at no extra cost in terms of arm torques yet offering a great comfort for wheelchair users.