Socially Aware Shared Control Navigation for Assistive Mobile Robots in the Built Environment
Yifan Xu, Qianwei Wang, Vineet R. Kamat, Carol C. Menassa · Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering · 2025
As the number of persons with disabilities (PWD), particularly those with one or more physical impairments increases, there has been an increasing demand for assistive technologies that can support independent mobility in the built environment and reduce the burden on caregivers. Current assistive mobility platforms (e.g., robotic wheelchairs) often fail to incorporate user preferences in the navigation and maneuvering control, leading to reduced trust and efficiency. For example, existing shared control algorithms do not allow the incorporation of both the user’s path and control preferences inside the navigation framework or the path planning algorithm. In addition, existing navigation algorithms for assistive mobile robots do not consider the social spaces of people, potentially leading such platforms to infringe upon these areas and cause discomfort to both the PWD and the public. To address such concerns, this work introduces a novel socially aware shared control-based navigation system for assistive mobile robotic platforms operating in the built environment. Our navigation framework comprises a global planner and a local planner. First, the proposed approach introduces a novel user preference field (UPF) theory within its global planning framework, explicitly acknowledging user preferences to adeptly navigate away from congested areas. Second, we propose a local planner that incorporates socially aware shared control-based model predictive control with dynamic control barrier function (SS-MPC-DCBF) to adjust wheelchair movements in real time, integrating user control for safer, more socially acceptable navigation. Evaluation results show that our global planner aligns closely with user preferences compared to baselines, and our local planner demonstrates enhanced safety and efficiency in dynamic and static scenarios. This integrated approach fosters trust and autonomy, crucial for the acceptance of assistive mobility technologies in the built environment.