Features

The Baribunma Wheelchair is a powered wheelchair which can move forward and in reverse and can be steered with accuracy thus allowing significant two-dimensional movement for the operator equivalent to the highest quality currently available motorised wheelchairs. Where the Baribunma Wheelchair is revolutionary is in its ability to make significant movements of the operator in the vertical plane whilst changing the rake of the operator’s seating position.

Essentially, the chair is able to raise the operator from a fully depressed seating position (seated as would be the case for an able bodied person in a motor vehicle), to a fully raised seating position equivalent to any other commercially available chair. In addition, the chair will be able to be used with full capabilities at any position in between fully depressed and fully raised enabling the user to sit at almost any table, desk or work bench regardless of height and to operate at a position of comfort regardless of body size or shape. Added to this is the ability to fit most makes of advanced seats to the Baribunma Wheelchair so that users are able to choose from a range of far more comfortable seats than currently possible. The chair also fit comfortably through standard doorways minimising modifications to the home and workplace.

The Baribunma Wheelchair is able to be used in conjunction with virtually any commercially available people-mover/van as is favoured by the disabled community. As such, it will be able to be used in any country and across cultures and environments. During the development and testing of the earlier custom built chairs, engineering certification was obtained enabling the disabled operators to actually drive motor vehicles using a combination of the chair and commercially available vehicle hand controls. Given the very strict motor traffic laws in New South Wales, this was very difficult to achieve and has not to our knowledge been duplicated anywhere in the world.

Existing wheelchairs require a vehicle to be structurally modified to allow entry of the wheelchair to the vehicle and restraint accessories to be fitted and certified by an engineer to fasten the chair during travel. This is mainly due to the inability of existing electric wheelchairs to reduce sufficiently in height to clear the access door(s) of the vehicle. (structural change can cause damage to a vehicle by affecting its structural integrity, significant added costs are involved and, in the long term, corrosion can occur). Typically, these structural changes involve lowering of vehicle floors, raising of vehicle roofs, fitting of commercial "hoists" or a combination of these solutions. The Baribunma Wheelchair can adapt to fit most commercially available people-mover vans by reducing sufficiently in height to allow ready access. Furthermore, with smaller wheels and a small, easily fitted, lockdown, the Baribunma Wheelchair needs no costly restraints or further engineering certification.