Levaté Wheelchair Lift
Challenge
How to restore independence and reach of manual wheelchair users
Process
Investigated wheelchair users’ needs, iteratively prototyped wheelchair lift accessory (Levaté) using Solidworks, 3D printers, and machining tools
Impact
Co-founded Levaté, LLC (http://www.levatelift.com/), obtained first round of seed funding
Background:
Wheelchair users face reach-related difficulties on a daily basis, specifically in unadapted environments that have not been retrofitted for wheelchair accessibility. Wheelchair users have adapted to these environments by either using ineffective “grabbers” or balancing precariously on their wheelchairs to extend their reach. In fact, in 2003, over 65,000 wheelchair users were treated in emergency rooms in the U.S. due to tipping or falling out of their wheelchairs. The Levaté wheelchair lift gives manual wheelchair users an extra twelve inches of reach, whether it be in the grocery store, in their offices, or in their homes.
Design Considerations:
-
Levaté lifts twelve inches not from the wheelchair seat but from the base of the wheelchair itself.
-
Wheelchair users indicated that their footrests provide a very important sense of security that disappears when they are elevated simply from their seats. Through experiential prototyping, the team also discovered that wheelchair users grew uncomfortable at heights beyond twelve inches.
-
-
Levaté is pneumatically-driven, rather than electrically-driven with motors.
-
Wheelchair users expressed a strong aversion towards electric components, saying that they make them feel more disabled.
-
-
Levaté has an expanding base to provide stability and maintain safety, even at an increased height.
-
Even at modest elevations, wheelchair users stressed the importance of feeling safe in the raised position.
-
-
Levaté is portable, weighs under ten pounds, and is easily attached and detached, specifically during frequent, daily transfers into and out of vehicles.
-
Wheelchair users conveyed the incredible importance of an attachment being lightweight, as these users already exert themselves constantly throughout the day.
-
-
Levaté has a small profile, so as to not obstruct daily wheelchair usage.
-
Wheelchair users take pride in personalizing their wheelchairs, so it was important that Levaté not take up a large portion of wheelchair real-estate.
-
(Note: All design considerations reflect over 15 interviews with wheelchair users, 50 survey responses from wheelchair users, and over 70 combined hours spent as a team in wheelchairs.)