Petra Friedrich

New mobility concepts for disabled and elderly people

This paper deals with the development of a new mobility concept for disabled and elderly people. The focus of our project is a wheelchair which can climb stairs. In order to give the user maximum freedom regarding absolute mobility, the wheelchair has to suitable for indoor and outdoor usage and therefore be extremely manoeuvrable. A further goal is the integration of the wheelchair into a car. With its help the user is able to travel longer distances independently by car.

Telematic rehabilitation 2.0

Today, the compliance of device-based therapy for extended periods lies often below 50 percent [1]. Furthermore every second household is equipped with both a powerful computer and a flat-screen TV ([3], [4]). This project is motivated by the idea to connect these facts. For an increased motivation to use the daily hours of media consumption simultaneously for rehabilitation, a data animation is combined with a browser window or media player. With the COMES®1 interface, a therapist has additionally the possibility to interact with the user and animation. Moreover a usability test has been made, to examine the acceptance of both patients and therapists for a media supported rehabilitation. The objective of this project is to reduce the motivational threshold of a daily training and thus increase the compliance in long term rehabilitation.

Home care: A telematic rehabilitation exerciser

This paper deals with the development of a system established on a telematic rehabilitation exerciser, a plug-PC and a real-time web-animation. An easy to use device, which allows a telematically controlled training at home is target of this project. It is thereby based on the diagnosis and therapy platform COMES® of the Heinz Nixdorf-Lehrstuhl für Medizinische Elektronik of the Technische Universität München. In COMES® mobile measured vital parameters are intelligently evaluated by an expert system before they are provided to the user along with medical information and trends. A Java application allows the real-time data, which is sent by a telematic exerciser and received over the Bluetooth interface of the plug-PC to be filtered and transmitted over a SQL-connection on, to a database. These data is retrieved by the animation and evaluated in form of a game. To visualize this web-animation, the screen of a potential terminal device is splitted in two and taking only a small horizontal part, this animation is shown on the screen. The other part could be filled by a TV-programm, Video or Skype window depending on the abilities of the terminal device which could be any device with an internet browser (e.g. a Smart TV).

Care of cardiovascular disease with COMES

Due to rising numbers of applications for rehabilitation treatment, the significance of medical rehabilitation in Germany increases steadily. Nevertheless, the duration of rehabilitation is limited to three weeks, making an efficient and successful post-rehabilitative aftercare essential. For this reason, a telematic system called COMES® was developed at the Heinz Nixdorf Lehrstuhl für Medizinische Elektronik der Technischen Universität München. COMES® supports the continuation of life style changes after rehabilitation as it collects and utilizes, daily and individually, important data concerning a patients cardiovascular disease. Thus with COMES®, e.g. physicians, are able to react immediately to worsening circumstances. Furthermore patients have an extensive overview of their own rehabilitation process.

An autonomous stair-climbing wheelchair

Abstract Demographic change is making more and more elderly people dependent on care. As a result, there are staff shortages at nursing homes, which now require technical aid. Mobility is considered an essential component for ensuring quality of life, social contact, and a self-determined life. With the introduction of the autonomous stair-climbing wheelchair, unlimited and independent mobility is ensured for movement-limited people. Because of dynamic stabilization, the wheelchair moves on only one axis. Thereby, it has highly agile driving behavior and is compact in size. The autonomous climbing system is based on a leg mechanism that consists of two legs with lower and upper leg support. While climbing a stairway, the legs push the wheelchair on the next higher situated step. Afterwards the legs are pulled successively on to the next step as well. While climbing down, the opposite sequence of movements occurs.

Digitalisierung in der Pflege – Assistenzsysteme für Gesundheit und Generationen

Die Zahl der Pflegebedurftigen in unserer Gesellschaft wird in den kommenden Jahren und Jahrzehnten stark steigen – Prognosen zufolge wird der Mehrbedarf an Pflegepersonal nur schwer zu decken sein. Doch ist es schon heute moglich, viele der Tatigkeiten in Assistenz und Pflege durch digitale Techniken und Systeme zu unterstutzen und dem Personal so Zeit fur andere pflegerische Aufgaben zu verschaffen. Denkbar ist auch, dass altere Menschen kunftig verstarkt intelligente Assistenzsysteme nutzen, um autonom zu bleiben und pflegerische Hilfe erst sehr spat zu benotigen. In jedem Fall ist es notwendig, die Entwicklung solcher Systeme durch zusatzliche forderpolitische Masnahmen zu unterstutzen. Der Beitrag skizziert einige intelligente Assistenzsysteme, die entweder schon technische Einsatzreife erlangt haben oder diese mit einem uberschaubaren Entwicklungsaufwand erreichen konnten.

Stair sensing system based on optical 3D data for an autonomous stair-climbing wheelchair

This paper deals with the development of an optical based scanning method for a new autonomous stair-climbing wheel chair. Therefore, two different 3D data acquisition methods are compared, a stereo camera system and a RGB-D camera (Kinect™ from Microsoft®). After that, an image based algorithm calculates the step width and height in order to support the wheelchair with control information. As both detecting methods work on a different principle, advantages and disadvantages are discussed. The focus for comparison of both methods lies in the stair recognition under different conditions such as external lightening and material of the stairs.

A conceptfor integration ofrehabilitation in smart homes

This article describes a design for integrating a telemedical rehabilitation system into a smart home concept. The focus thereby lies on the interface communication, the user benefit and the challenges of combining these complex systems. The objective of this project is, to create an easy-to-use and user-orientated system, which shows the potential of combining smart-home technology with a telemedical rehabilitation system for the users benefit. Difficulties as well as best-practice solutions are further discussed in this article.