The purpose of this study was to characterize wheelchair tiedown and occupant restraint system (WTORS) usage in public transit buses based on observations of wheelchair and scooter (wheeled mobility device: WhMD) passenger trips. A retrospective review of on-board video surveillance recordings of WhMD trips on fixed-route, large accessible transit vehicles (LATVs) was performed. Two hundred nin...

Young children with severe motor impairments face a higher risk of secondary impairments in the development of social, cognitive, and motor skills, owing to the lack of independent mobility. Although power wheelchairs are typical tools for providing independent mobility, the steep learning curve, safety concerns, and high cost may prevent children aged 2 to 5 years from using them. We have deve...

OBJECTIVE This study aims to quantify and describe the burden of fatal pedestrian crashes among persons using wheelchairs in the USA from 2006 to 2012. DESIGN The occurrence of fatal pedestrian crashes among pedestrians using wheelchairs was assessed using two-source capture-recapture. Descriptive analysis of fatal crashes was conducted using customary approaches. SETTING Two registries wer...

BACKGROUND Wheelchairs provide mobility that can enhance function and community integration. Function in a wheelchair is influenced by wheelchair design. OBJECTIVES To explore the impact of wheelchair design on user function and the variables that guided wheelchair prescription in the study setting. METHOD A mixed-method, descriptive design using convenience sampling was implemented. Quanti...

Hephaestus, the Greek god of fire, craftsmen and smiths was the only Olympian with a disability. Hephaestus was injured when his father, Zeus, flung him off Mount Olympus for siding against Zeus in a dispute with Hephaestus' mother, Hera. To compensate for his disability Hephaestus built two robots, one silver and one gold, to transport him. The Hephaestus Smart Wheelchair System is envisioned ...

This comparative study of two similar wheelchairs designed for less-resourced settings provides feedback to manufacturers, informing ongoing improvement in wheelchair design. It also provides practical familiarity to clinicians in countries where these chairs are available, in their selection of prescribed wheelchairs. In Kenya, 24 subjects completed 3 timed skills and assessments of energy cos...

BACKGROUND Rates of shoulder pain in individuals who use manual wheelchairs (MWCs) as their primary means of mobility have been reported to be as high as 70% during activities of daily living. Current prevailing thought is that mechanical impingement of the soft tissues that reside within the subacromial space between the humeral head and coracoacromial arch is a major contributor to the should...

This study proposes a way to reduce energy losses in the form of rolling resistance friction during manual wheelchair propulsion by increasing the size of the front caster wheels and adjusting the weight distribution. Drag tests were conducted using a treadmill and a force transducer. Three different casters diameter (4 in., 5 in., and 6 in.) and six different mass distribution combinations (ba...