Ability Drive® Comes to iPad

Ability Drive® Comes to iPad

The freedom to drive your power wheelchair with your eyes, now on iPad.

Ability Drive® lets a person control a power wheelchair entirely with their eyes. It connects two worlds that rarely meet: an eye gaze device and the power wheelchair someone uses to move. For many people, that eye gaze device is the same one they already use to speak. For others, it is used purely for driving. Either way, just by looking at arrows on a screen, they drive and adjust their seating. Starting in September 2026, that same freedom arrives on iPad.

Now on iPad

We built the iPad version of Ability Drive® to meet people on the device many of them already know and love. It brings the drive-by-eye experience to iPad with the same clear, arrow based controls our users trust. One look moves you forward. One look turns you. One look brings you to a safe stop. Independence, now in an even more familiar place.

Compatible Eye Tracking Cameras

Ability Drive® for iPad works with the GazeFirst eyetuitive camera and the IrisBond Hiru camera, so you can drive-by-eye using the trusted tracking hardware that fits your setup.

Coming soon: Compatibility with Apple Vision Pro is coming soon, giving power wheelchair users a responsive, hands free way to drive using the eye tracking built into Apple Vision Pro. Read more about the collaboration.

Built on Three Principles

• Simple – The people we serve already face enough frustration, and equipment should never add more. Ability Drive® is built so success comes fast. We have watched people who have never used a power wheelchair or an eye gaze device drive through a doorway in under a minute.
• Supported – A person who depends on this technology to move should never be left on their own. Ability Drive® works with the speech devices and wheelchairs people already trust, backed by a network of distributors around the world. Our US based technical support team answers calls and Slack chats from 7am to 3pm PST.
• Safe – Ability Drive® is a safety critical product with a patented safety system, and we treat it that way. Every change, even one that looks small, goes through a full test pass with someone in the chair, driving.

Made for Independence

Many of the people who use Ability Drive® already use their eyes to speak. Now they use their eyes to move. We have watched a teenager feel independent for the very first time and heard of a young child driving himself to his classroom rather than waiting to be pushed. A little bit of technology can make an immense difference in a person’s life. The iPad version opens that door for even more families.

About Tolt Technologies

Tolt Technologies is a women owned, family run company based in Duvall, Washington, building alternative drive systems for power wheelchair users. We are an American manufacturer, and most of our work happens in house, where we run our own 3D printers and oversee every step. Founded on the belief that independent mobility is a fundamental right, Tolt gives users responsive, reliable, and intuitive ways to move through the world.

What is Ability Drive?

Ability Drive by Tolt Technologies is an innovative assistive technology system that allows individuals to drive a powered wheelchair using only their eyes.

It acts as a digital bridge between a user’s eye-gaze device and their power wheelchair, creating a “virtual joystick” on a screen.

How It Works

The Software: The user looks at a display running the Ability Drive app, which features large, virtual direction buttons (Forward, Left, Right, Reverse).

Eye Tracking: An integrated eye-tracking camera monitors where the user is looking. When they look at the “Forward” button, the wheelchair moves forward.

The Hardware Interface (The ADT): A specialized hardware interface connects the eye-gaze tablet directly to the power wheelchair’s existing alternative control port (a standard 9-pin port) to translate eye movements into physical wheelchair motion safely and instantly.

Key Benefits

Restores Independence: It is specifically designed for people who have lost the functional use of their hands, arms, legs, or head (such as individuals living with ALS, advanced cerebral palsy, spinal cord injuries, or Parkinson’s disease) and can no longer use a traditional joystick.

Broad Compatibility: Rather than forcing users to buy a whole new setup, it is engineered to integrate with a massive list of major speech-generating and AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) devices from brands like Tobii Dynavox, Smartbox, PRC-Saltillo, and Talk To Me Technologies.

Universal Wheelchair Fit: It connects seamlessly to major power wheelchair brands, including Permobil, Quantum, Invacare, Sunrise, and Amylior.

Safety-First Design: Tolt Technologies stringently tests and approves specific hardware combinations to ensure there is zero lag or sluggishness when a user looks away to stop the chair, preventing accidental collisions.

Funding: Because it is a critical piece of mobility equipment, the system is frequently fundable through Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance plans.