A Usability Study of an Application to Configure Virtual Reality Training Environments for Wheelchair Users

Return to work (RTW) for a person with a disability can be complicated. The Rientr@ project aims to promote the recovery of autonomy in daily life and RTW of novice wheelchair users (WUs). It proposed a virtual-reality-based wheelchair simulator to help WUs become familiar with their new condition. Three virtual environments were created, and a configuration application was developed to let therapists customize the training to patients' characteristics and residual physical skills. The present work describes the usability evaluation of such an application, named Rientr@ Configurator (RC). The assessment was performed with 7 end-users; task analysis and a think-aloud protocol were used; performance and qualitative data were collected. The RC application was rated easy to use. Therapists suggested a few changes that have been implemented to increase usability and speed up the configuration procedure.