Leveraged Freedom Chair

The Leveraged Freedom Chair (LFC) was an all-terrain wheelchair made from bicycle parts.[1][2][3]

History

Amos Winter, a PhD graduate from MIT, travelled to Tanzania during his work, and found that conventional wheelchairs are inadequate in areas without wheelchair accessible roads and buildings.[4] He and his students from his mechanical engineering class worked together on the development of the project. The tests of the LFC were conducted in East Africa, Guatemala and India.[5]

Description

In addition to a normal wheelchair push rim, the wheelchair had a lever drivetrain that let the user grip the lever far from the wheel for high torque on rough terrain. The levers could be removed and stored on the chair, allowing it to be used like a normal wheelchair indoors.[6] The wheelchairs were designed to be produced at low cost from commonly available bicycle parts, and to be repaired and maintained at local bicycle shops.

The chair was developed by a group called Global Research Innovation & Technology. The chair was sold at around US $250 to NGOs--less than the price of common wheelchairs.[7]

The LFC made way for the GRIT Freedom Chair, an improved all-terrain wheelchair designed for the developed world. The initial version of the Freedom Chair product launched on Kickstarter with a lowest price point of US$2,195, which sold out.[7]

Awards

References
  1. "Leveraged Freedom Chair". MIT Video.
  2. "New Wheelchair Is Easier to Use, Increases Mobility". Voice of America. 27 Mar 2015.
  3. "Case Study: Leveraged Freedom Chair, by Amos Winter, Jake Childs and Jung Tak Enabling Freedom for the Disabled in Developing Countries". 6 Feb 2011.
  4. Blendis, Stefanie (10 June 2013). "Off-road wheelchair offers freedom for disabled poor". CNN.
  5. Limón Martirosyan, Lia. "MIT — Leveraged Freedom Chair". Ability Magazine. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  6. "Leveraged Freedom Chair (LFC) / India - An innovative lever-powered wheelchair for developing countries". Development Lab, MIT.
  7. "The GRIT Freedom Chair takes the wheelchair mountain biking". Gizmag. 15 Nov 2014.
  8. "Patents for Humanity Awards 2015". United States Patent and Trademark Office.
  9. "Patents for Humanity Awards Ceremony at the White House". IP Watchdog Blog. 20 April 2015.
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