Assistive technology

Assistive technology (AT) encompasses a wide range of devices, systems, and services designed to support disabled individuals and older adults in performing essential activities of daily living (ADLs). These activities include toileting, mobility, ambulation, eating, bathing, dressing, grooming, and caring for personal equipment. By reducing functional barriers, assistive technology promotes autonomy, enhances social participation, and contributes to an improved quality of life. Such technologies are also valuable in educational and rehabilitative contexts, enabling individuals with physical, sensory, or cognitive limitations to engage more fully in daily tasks and learning.

Concept and Scope of Assistive Technology

Assistive technology includes any tool or system that enhances a person’s ability to carry out tasks that might otherwise be difficult or impossible. This broad category ranges from low-tech items such as adapted utensils or walking aids to high-tech solutions like voice-recognition software and environmental control systems. Through these interventions, users can compensate for impairments, adopt alternative approaches to tasks, and maintain a higher level of independence.
AT plays a particularly significant role in supporting individuals recovering from stroke, injury, or degenerative conditions. In such cases, devices may enable users to regain functional ability or reduce reliance on caregivers. Studies highlight the importance of integrating financial support and public health strategies to improve access, especially among older populations who may experience multiple functional limitations.

Adaptive Technology

Adaptive technology is a subset of assistive technology. While assistive technology benefits individuals both with and without disabilities, adaptive technology refers specifically to items designed solely for disabled users. These are usually tailored to address particular functional needs and are seldom employed by the general population. Examples include screen readers, specialised communication devices, and customised computer interfaces intended to make digital environments accessible.
Adaptive technology often concerns electronic or information systems that require modification to ensure usability. Its focus on digital accessibility reflects the growing importance of technology-mediated communication, education, and occupational engagement.

Occupational Therapy and Assistive Technology

Occupational therapy (OT) incorporates assistive technology into therapeutic practice to promote meaningful participation across daily occupations. Occupational therapists assess a client’s strengths, limitations, and personal goals, matching these with appropriate technologies to optimise performance in ADLs, instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs), education, work, leisure, and social participation.
OT practitioners employ theoretical frameworks such as the HAAT model, the Interdependence Human Activity Assistive Technology Model, the SETT Framework, and the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology. These frameworks guide decision-making by ensuring that device selection aligns with the user’s environment, physical capabilities, and lifestyle needs. Professional credentialing through organisations such as the Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America enhances therapist expertise in areas including mobility, seating, and visual impairment technologies.

Mobility Impairments and Assistive Devices

Mobility-related AT includes a broad spectrum of devices designed to support ambulation, stability, and safe transfer between positions. These technologies are essential for individuals whose physical impairments affect their ability to walk or maintain balance.

• Wheelchairs provide mobility substitutions for those unable to walk. They can be manually controlled or powered by electric motors and include input systems such as joysticks, sip-and-puff controls, and head switches. Innovations allow modern wheelchairs to navigate stairs, uneven terrain, or long distances through powered add-ons or hybrid mechanisms.
• Transfer devices assist caregivers in moving individuals with restricted mobility. These range from simple slider boards and gait belts to advanced sling lifts used for patients requiring full support. Transfer benches and convertible stretchers support safe movement between seated, lying, and standing positions.
• Walkers and Rollators offer stability for people who experience balance or gait difficulties. Adjustable frames accommodate users of various ages and sizes. Devices with wheels, glides, or caster systems provide increased manoeuvrability and support.
• Treadmill-based rehabilitation systems, such as body-weight–supported treadmill training (BWSTT), allow individuals with neurological injuries to practise walking under the assistance of mechanical and therapeutic guidance. These systems reduce physical strain on therapists and promote repetitive, task-specific movement training.

Prosthetic Technology

Prostheses replace or augment missing or impaired body parts and are integral to the field of biomechatronics, which merges mechanical engineering with human physiology. Modern prosthetic limbs may incorporate sensors, actuators, and microprocessors to mimic natural movement patterns, improving both functional capacity and user comfort. Prosthetic devices serve users who have experienced trauma, congenital conditions, or chronic disease.
Internal prostheses such as artificial heart valves are widely used in clinical medicine, while artificial hearts and artificial lungs remain areas of ongoing technological development. These devices illustrate the expanding scope of AT in supporting not only mobility and communication but also vital physiological functions.

Broader Impact of Assistive Technology

Assistive technologies contribute substantially to individual empowerment and societal inclusion. By reducing dependence on caregivers, AT enables disabled individuals to manage daily routines more independently. In educational settings, AT promotes equal access to curricula and enhances learning experiences. Across communities, the adoption of supportive technologies fosters accessibility, participation, and quality of life for people with diverse needs.
Moreover, widespread use of assistive devices can reduce institutional care costs and support ageing-in-place initiatives, allowing older adults to continue living in their homes and communities safely. As global populations age, policies that expand access to assistive technologies are increasingly recognised as essential to social welfare and public health.