Movable Folding Seat for Wheelchair Transfer
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Solution Overview
Problem
Motorists with motor disabilities face challenges in accessing affordable and efficient means of transferring between their vehicles and mobility aids like wheelchairs or scooters, often requiring assistance and incurring high costs, with existing solutions being expensive and cumbersome.
Innovation Solution
A device comprising a crate with a folding seat and guide mechanisms that allows for easy transfer of a wheelchair or scooter between a vehicle and a user, featuring releasable fasteners, locking mechanisms, and detection systems to ensure safe and efficient operation, reducing the need for assistance and lowering operational costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If vehicle fittings are used to transport and present wheelchairs to drivers, then wheelchair delivery is enabled, but the cost becomes very expensive
Solution Approach 1:
The system separates the wheelchair storage and transfer functions into distinct modular components: a street furniture container for storage, a movable folding seat for transfer, and guide means for positioning. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently and reduces overall system complexity and cost compared to integrated vehicle fittings.
Solution Approach 2:
The movable folding seat acts as an intermediary element between the wheelchair and the driver's vehicle. It provides a stable transfer surface that can be positioned precisely using guide means, enabling safe and easy transfer without requiring expensive vehicle-mounted equipment or assistance personnel.
2Ease of operation
If wheelchairs are made available in public places with assistance personnel, then wheelchair access is provided, but the cost becomes very expensive
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables drivers to independently access and transfer to wheelchairs without assistance personnel. The movable folding seat can be autonomously positioned along the guide means to the correct location, and the fastening system automatically secures the wheelchair, allowing the driver to complete the transfer process alone.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates detection means that monitor the position of the movable folding seat and the state of fasteners. This feedback mechanism ensures the folding seat is correctly positioned before transfer and that the wheelchair is properly secured, providing safety assurance without requiring human operators.
3Loss of time
If transfer time between vehicle and wheelchair is reduced, then user fatigue and pollution exposure are reduced, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The folding seat is designed as a movable rather than fixed element, capable of sliding along guide means to dynamically adjust its position. This dynamic positioning allows the folding seat to be quickly brought into alignment with both the vehicle and wheelchair, significantly reducing transfer time compared to fixed transfer systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The system replaces complex mechanical vehicle fittings with a simpler combination of guide means (such as rails or tracks) and a movable folding seat. This substitution reduces overall system complexity while achieving faster transfer times through smooth, guided motion of the folding seat along the simple linear path provided by the guide means.
Data Source
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AI summary
The device comprises a box (1) having an opening (4) at least on one side and containing a personal vehicle (23) and a folding seat (20), respective transfer locations, in which the personal vehicle (23) and the folding seat (20) are located next to and in close proximity to each other, said movable folding seat (20) being capable of being guided between a forward position close to the motor vehicle seat and the transfer location of same, a seat intended to support the user and guided between said folding seat (20) and said personal vehicle (23), when said vehicle (23) and said folding seat (20) are in the respective transfer locations of same.