Discussion about functionalities of the Virtual Fauteuil simulator for wheelchair training environment

A physical disability can highly harm the capability of a person to move. There are vehicles, like powered or manual wheelchair that can give to disabled people a part of their mobility back but this will not give them their entire mobility and autonomy. Virtual Fauteuil is a platform of simulation for wheelchair that has been developed in order to analyze issues linked to the use of a wheelchair in the daily life. Indeed, Virtual Fauteuil is a platform that offers immersive simulations of travel with a wheelchair in a virtual environment. This immersion is guaranteed by the projection of the user of the platform in a virtual environment, and through integrated haptic feedback devices. This article presents a discussion about the platform: its capacities and its challenges.