We have covered “intelligent” wheelchairs before, but one that can be controlled through facial muscles is new. A team of researchers at Japan’s Miyazaki University developed a system aimed at people paralyzed from the neck down or those who have lost muscular strength in their body for a reason.
The way it works is pretty simple: the wheelchair, which is still in prototype mode, can be turned left or right by blinking the eyes and put into motion (and stopped) by clenching one’s teeth.
Professor Tamura, the mastermind behind the system, says that the hands-free wheelchair will see a commercial version (which won’t require the four electrodes) next year.
This video, shot by Diginfo TV in Tokyo, provides more insight (in English):
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