PFI: Development, Technology Transfer, and Commercialization of the Automated Transport and Retrieval System (ATRS)

这一创新伙伴关系(PFI)项目--自动运输和检索系统(ATRS)的开发、技术转让和商业化--提议为轮椅用户提供显著提高的行动独立性。美国有600万残疾人难以获得所需的交通工具。这是全国残疾人失业率的主要贡献者，据美国人口普查局估计，残疾人失业率超过65%。目前，面包车改装是轮椅使用者唯一的个人交通选择。不幸的是，面包车改装在用户安全和成本方面都存在重大缺陷。为了解决这些限制，该项目建议开发、技术转让和商业化个人独立行动的新范例：自动运输和检索系统(ATRS)。ATRS将机器人技术和自动化技术与现有的移动产品无缝集成到结构不变的汽车中。通过消除对基础车辆的大幅修改，ATRS将以显著降低的成本为面包车转换提供更安全的替代方案，具有更大的灵活性。ATRS将把可靠的自主系统付诸实践，这些系统将实现稳健的传感和单点传感器故障的自动确定。它还将采用最先进的算法来估计和控制轮椅执行器的姿势。该系统将被设计为低成本，因为大多数传感器将是固态的，因此它们可以以非常低的成本生产。交通便利对美国残疾人和老年人充分参与就业、教育、崇拜、职业培训、商业、娱乐和其他社区生活活动至关重要。通过便利个人交通，ATRS将提高全国残障人士的个人独立性和生活质量，并将有助于消除阻碍轮椅使用者就业的最大障碍之一。ATR的商业化将对当地和国家经济产生影响。ATRS的成功将有助于费城工业发展公司(PIDC)将退役的费城海军造船厂改造成一个繁荣的物理工程科学园区，在费城创造新的公司和就业机会。最后，ATR的成本优势还将减轻第三方付款人的负担，并最终减少此类努力所需的税款。合作伙伴：利哈伊大学(领先机构)；行业合作伙伴：自由科学有限责任公司；库克技术公司；Sensable Machines，Inc.；以及公共部门合作伙伴：宾夕法尼亚州社区和经济发展部和费城工业发展公司。

This Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) project, Development, Technology Transfer and Commercialization of the Automated Transport and Retrieval System (ATRS), proposes to provide significantly increased mobility independence for wheelchair users. Six million people in the United States with disabilities have difficulties in obtaining the transportation they need. This is a major contributor to the unemployment rate of the disabled population nationally, estimated at over 65% by the U.S. Census Bureau. Currently, a van conversion represents the sole personal transportation choice for wheelchair users. Unfortunately, van conversions have significant shortcomings in terms of both user safety and cost. To address these limitations, the project proposes the development, technology transfer, and commercialization of a new paradigm for personal independent mobility: the Automated Transport and Retrieval System (ATRS). ATRS seamlessly integrates robotics and automation technologies with existing mobility products into structurally unmodified automobiles. By eliminating the drastic modifications to the base vehicle, ATRS will provide a safer alternative to van conversions with more flexibility at a significantly reduced cost. ATRS will put into practice reliable autonomous systems that will enable robust sensing and the automatic determination of single-point sensor failures. It will also employ state-of-the-art algorithms for pose estimation and control of the wheelchair actuators. The system will be engineered to be low cost since most of the sensors will be solid state, and they can therefore be produced at very lowcost.Access to transportation is critical for Americans with disabilities and the elderly to participate fully in employment, education, worship, job training, commerce, recreation, and other activities of community life. By facilitating personal transportation, ATRS will improve personal independence and the quality of life for the physically challenged across the country and will help remove one of the greatest hurdles preventing wheelchair users from finding employment. The commercialization of ATRS will have local and national economic impact. The success of ATRS will aid the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation (PIDC) in the revitalization of the retired Philadelphia Naval Shipyard into a thriving physical engineering sciences campus, creating new companies and jobs in Philadelphia. Finally, the cost advantages of ATRS will also lessen the burden on third party payers and ultimately decrease the required tax dollars for such efforts.Partners: The partners include: Lehigh University (Lead Institution); industry partners: Freedom Sciences, LLC; Cook Technologies, Inc.; and Sensible Machines, Inc., and public sector partners: Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development and Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation..