Assisting with activities of daily living (ADL) using wheelchair-mounted robotic arms requires mounting hardware that is quick to reconfigure, reliable, and simple to operate. This paper introduces a lightweight, tool-free quick attach-detach (quick-change) base designed specifically for transferring robotic arms between wheelchairs and laboratory benchtops. Machined from 6061-T6 aluminum, the compact subassembly weighs approximately 340 g, safely meeting strict mobile platform payload limits, while sustaining a robust structural torque capacity of 100 Nm. Crucially, the architecture incorporates a unique 15° wedge-hook locking geometry that tolerates modest user alignment errors (up to 12°) and naturally self-compensates for material wear over repeated cycles. Experimental laboratory evaluation demonstrates that the proposed mechanism reduces arm installation time from 7 min to 35 s and removal time from 5 min to 25 s. These figures represent an approximate 92% reduction in transition times compared to conventional bolt-fastened baselines, significantly streamlining research workflows and improving usability for caregivers and assistive technology users.
A Tool-Free Quick-Change Base for Wheelchair-Mounted Robotic Arms
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