Electric wheelchairs are (slowly) losing their stigma
The look of wheelchairs has remained virtually the same for decades. This is now changing: electromobility is creating a completely new design, and the wheelchair is becoming a practical assistant for people with walking disabilities.
Electromobility has been established in cars and on bicycles for some time now. However, right in the field of wheelchairs, where it can offer particularly many advantages, it is only making slow progress. Over the past 100 years, the classic design of the wheelchair has changed very little: two large wheels at the back, two small ones at the front, with a seat and a footrest in between. The rear large wheels exist for one reason only: namely, that they can be turned using arm power. This usually works quite well, as is often seen, but it takes a great deal of strength in the arms to make locomotion possible. Many older people do not have this strength. Also, the shoulder must be turned relatively far inward to gain momentum from behind the wheels. And if the wheelchair is used for pushing, especially in the case of older people, this is not always easy for the relatives either – especially if they are older themselves.
The design of the wheelchairs is changing
The technical progress in electric mobility – small batteries make it possible – is also fundamentally changing the design of the wheelchair. As of now, the large wheels are simply no longer necessary. Thanks to a small lever, it is now much easier to move around the house and outside independently.
The situation when going for a walk also changes: anyone sitting in a wheelchair and being pushed by relatives could previously only look ahead – without eye contact with the other person. With an e-wheelchair, however, eye contact and cultivated conversation are now possible because people can ride side by side. And the function also undergoes a radical transformation: Some e-wheelchairs are designed in such a way that they hardly differ from an armchair. At home, for example, the e-wheelchair simply serves as a multifunctional seat when watching TV.
The wheelchair becomes a robot
And it’s only a small step from the multifunctional seat to the care robot: the wheelchair independently measures its owner’s weight, helps them get into bed, and detects moisture or bad odors. In its function as a care assistant, the wheelchair can support care at home or in hospital. And now that more and more homes are being (re)built to be barrier-free, the functionalities of an e-wheelchair can be put to optimal use. After all, care at home is in many cases preferable to admission to a nursing home. This works perfectly with an e-wheelchair: a care service can contact the person in the wheelchair at any time via a small screen and thus easily help in any emergency situations.
Autonomous wheelchair
A look into the future shows that autonomous driving will soon also reach the wheelchair. In times of staff and nursing shortages, autonomous wheelchairs will be able to drive themselves to the bathroom or roosm in hospitals or at home, with the wheelchair’s position controlled at all times by GPS.
Summary: The design of wheelchairs will change significantly as a result of the use of electromobility. In the future, wheelchairs will very likely fulfill more functions and be able to help people with walking disabilities even better than is possible today.