The US outfitFreedom Scienceshas developed a new system that enables those in powered wheelchairs to independently transport themselves and their wheelchair into and out of a wide range of vehicles.
The company's so-called Automated Transport and Retrieval System (ATRS) transforms a standard powered wheelchair into a “smart chair” that eliminates the need for a carer to assist a wheelchair user into a vehicle, providing the wheelchair user with the ability to enter and exit a vehicle completely independently.
In operation, the ATRS lowers the driver or passenger seat from the vehicle at the same time that a wheelchair storage unit is unloaded from the rear of the vehicle. Once positioned in the seat, the user operates a remote control to guide the wheelchair to the back of the vehicle.
As the wheelchair reaches the vehicle's storage unit, the remote is no longer needed and a non-contact laser measurement system takes over the navigation, precisely loading the wheelchair into the vehicle.
Tom Palermo, aBronze StarVietnam veteran and real estate agent from Somer’s Point, New Jersey, has been using ATRS since May of 2008 under a pre-market testing program conducted by Freedom Sciences. 'Now I don’t have to worry if my assistant is there to help me. ATRS has given me my independence back,' Palermo said.
ATRS is available this month for a suggested retail price of $28,000 for minivans and $32,000 for SUVs
Comment: Building safe, public EV charging sites
Why not use large batteries as storage devices combined with local charging networks for smoothing the demand / usage. The power supply would then be suitable for demand-side management and the...