Assessing manual wheelchair caster design for mobility in winter conditions
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Date
2016
Authors
Berthelette, Michele
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Abstract
Manual wheelchair users who live in cold climates are faced with daily difficulties related to personal independence and societal inclusion, as their assistive devices are unable to overcome the physical barriers created by snow. Packed snow on sidewalks creates a barrier for wheelchair users as the small caster wheels become embedded in the snow-pack, this leads to upper body fatigue as well as wheelchair tipping, and falling. The purpose of this thesis was to develop a method by which the best design could be determined of a group of four commercially available manual wheelchair casters. This method was developed based on the HAAT model of assistive technology design. It was confirmed that snow-packed surfaces, as well as increased inclines, had a significant detrimental effect on the recorded human factors determinants, as well as conventional engineering determinants.
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Keywords
Manual wheelchair, Winter mobility, Wheelchair design, Wheelchair caster