A Stair Climbing Wheelchair...A Promising Accomplishment!

Some brilliant minds gathered together in Zurich to make wheelchair users' life easier!

For now it's only a prototype made by an amazing group of youth! The 10 Swiss mechanical and engineering students unveiled the unique ‘Scalevo’ electric wheelchair last year, which can tackle and climb stairs by using rubber tracks between the two wheels. It also features extra wheels in the back of the chair which can lift users up.

The team, from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and the Zurich University of the Arts, aimed to develop a “powered wheelchair which meets the demands of daily use and has the ability to climb and descend stairs safely without external help or additional devices”.

See with your own eyes their excellent job!

The mechanical and electrical engineering students now have a working prototype and are planning to use it next year in the Cybathlon, an ETH-sponsored race for disabled athletes using assistive devices. There's no word on whether or not they plan on commercializing the technology.

The wheelchair can be seen in use, although it climbs stairs pretty slowly right now, the team hopes to ultimately attain a speed of one step per second.

This wheelchair would definitely improve the life of disabled people and give them the mobility that everyone deserves. Dozens of stair-climbing wheelchairs have been designed over the years; however none have ever made it to market!

Great work guys...I think we need more minds like these, thinking the common good!

Credits: Scalevo

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