Optimal Design of a Wheelchair Suspension Based on a Compliant Mechanism

1. Abstract In recent years, a compliant mechanism has been paid to attention as a new mechanism to replace a traditional rigid link mechanism and the use of compliant mechanisms in mechanical products, medical instruments and MEMS can be expected to increase. In our previous research, we focused on a vehicle suspension as a promising application target of a compliant mechanism and proposed an optimal design method for a vehicle suspension based on a compliant mechanism or a compliant suspension. In this research, we now apply a compliant suspension to a wheelchair and design a compliant suspension for a wheelchair using the method developed in the previous research. Most wheelchairs except some expensive ones don’t have a suspension and only rely on tires for absorbing vibration and shock from a road. Since a compliant suspension consists of fewer parts than a traditional suspension and can be potentially integrated into a frame of a wheelchair, a compliant suspension can be added to a wheelchair at low cost. We design and manufacture a compliant suspension, retrofit an existing wheelchair with it and test ride quality of a wheelchair with a compliant suspension. 2.