Case File2013–2016
Eye-Gaze-Controlled Wheelchair
NYU Abu Dhabi · with University of Ottawa
Challenge, contribution, and outcome
CHALLENGE
People who have lost voluntary motor control need a safe way to navigate unknown environments using eye gaze alone.
MY CONTRIBUTION
Designed and field-validated a gaze-driven wheelchair navigation stack with shared autonomy — the most-cited work in the publication record (170+ citations).
OUTCOME
Field-validated a gaze-driven wheelchair with shared autonomy in a real-world ALS case study — 170+ citations.
Narrative
A wheelchair navigation system driven entirely by eye gaze, built for people who have lost voluntary motor control — combining gaze tracking, obstacle sensing, and shared autonomy so the chair can navigate unknown environments safely. Validated in a real-world case study with a person living with ALS.
System Record
- Application
- APPAssistive Technology
- Laboratory
- Platforms
- PLATFORMPowered Wheelchair
- Period
- 2013–2016
Development & Validation
- Gaze input is fused with onboard sensing and assisted-control logic, so a single modality — where the user looks — becomes a safe, complete driving interface.
- Field-tested beyond the lab: the system was deployed and evaluated in the home of a person with ALS, navigating environments it had never seen.
- Published in IEEE Access; the most-cited work in my publication record (170+ citations).
Credits & Collaborators
Nikolaos Giakoumidis
NYU Abu Dhabi
Co-author
Mohamad Eid
NYU Abu Dhabi
Lead author · Principal Investigator
Abdulmotaleb El Saddik
University of Ottawa
Co-author
University of Ottawa
Research partner
Evidence
video
Related
Publications
- A novel eye-gaze-controlled wheelchair system for navigating unknown environments: case study with a person with ALS
IEEE Access 4, 558–573 · 2016
Photos
INSTRUMENTED CHAIR — SENSOR & GAZE RIG