Walking aids walkers for elderly

Walkers for elderly are specially designed walkers that provide support that older people needed. It also stimulates trunk extension for better posture. There are many kinds of walkers for the elder people. Walkers like, have the traditional walkers, rollator walkers, rolling walker, wheeled walker, folding walker, platform walker, walker with seat, hemi walker, 4 wheel walker, 3 wheel walker and many other handicap walker designs. All of these are specially designed for the elderly. All of these promote better stance, maximum grip because of a profiled handgrip, support and good therapy.

However, due to recent advancement of science and technology, a new kind of walker was developed. A walker that could help navigate and avoid collisions with obstacles could help reduce health costs and increase the quality of care and independence of thousands of people. The goal of these devices is to provide the basic support of a traditional walker coupled with the obstacle-avoiding capability of a computer algorithm. Ideally, these devices would function as a normal walker most of the time, but they would provide navigational and avoidance assistance whenever necessary.

This walker is designed to provide physical support and navigational assistance to visually impaired individuals. A computer controls the motors that guide the front wheels of the walker. Laser and ultrasonic sensors are mounted on the front and sides of the walker. These sensors can help to identify obstacles and landmark features, such as junctions and corridors. The user controls the walker through a set of spring-loaded handlebars that are equipped with an encoder that senses the direction in which the user wants to travel. A second set of optical encoders is mounted to the rear wheels and measures the total distance traveled by the device.

The walker is 770 mm long, 630 mm wide, and 895 mm in height. The mass of the device is currently 41 kg. The walker has good range and adequate reaction time and is structurally sound. The electronics are rugged and present minimal hazards because of failure. Wheel size and material selection do need to be revised. The next generation walker will consider these revisions and should be even lighter and more maneuverable. But these kind of walker is still limited, only a few own such a device.