Ryde and Slyde

In this quarter of development, our team addressed the theme of transportation accessibility in a wheelchair. Use of both public transportation and personal vehicles is essential to having a full and independent life in modern society. It was this broad need that led us to explore the challenges wheelchair users face when commuting.
The first half of development sought out an idea, which seemed unlikely or even implausible, a dark horse candidate. The challenge selected was to allow manual wheelchair users to traverse up and down stairs entirely unassisted, and with minimal infrastructure change. The need for stair traversal becomes painfully clear looking at the accessibility of major metro systems.
The reason for such poor accessibility is aging infrastructure, with limited room to retrofit accessible options. A low-cost portable solution is needed to overcome these limitations. Our team prototyped solutions using minimal modification to the wheelchair and existing equipment on the market including rock-climbing equipment and ratcheting straps.
In addition to public transportation, commuting by personal vehicles can also present challenges to the wheelchair user. While transferring from wheelchair to vehicle can be a challenge, loading and transportation of the wheelchair itself presents the primary obstacle to ease of travel. We introduce the Wheelchair Transit Adapter, a novel device that stows the wheelchair outside of the vehicle, freeing space inside the car and eliminating difficult and injurious lifting motions for our user, caretakers of the wheelchair bound elderly.
The Wheelchair Transit Adapter aims to be a low-cost solution to the problem of wheelchair-vehicle compatibility. The prototype we developed is easy to use and install, requiring no permanent alterations to the vehicle. Additionally, its low profile minimizes the effect on driving experience. With further development the WTA system may improve the commuting experience for young, active wheelchair user in addition to the elderly and their caretakers.