The development and testing of a system for wheelchair stability measurement.

Wheelchair stability has an impact on safety as well as wheelchair performance, propulsion and manoeuvrability. Wheelchair stability is affected by the addition of life-supporting heavy equipment, e.g.

Establishing user needs for a stability assessment tool to guide wheelchair prescription.

Purpose: The WheelSense project aims to develop a system for assessing the stability and performance of wheelchairs through a user-centred design process. This study sought to capture user needs and define the specification for the system.

Method: A mixed methods approach was adopted.

Improving wheelchair prescription: an analysis of user needs and existing tools.

Wheelchair users experience many situations that affect the stability and associated performance of their wheelchair. Stability is affected by user characteristics and abilities, environmental features and conditions, and wheelchair modification and accessories. Wheelchair prescribers need effective tools and methods to provide quantitative evaluation and prediction of the behavior of the user-wheelchair system in a variety of static and dynamic situations.

The user testing toolset: a decision support system to aid the evaluation of assistive technology products.

Developers of assistive technology products need to ensure that their offerings meet the requirements of end users, and that usability issues have been discovered prior to manufacture. This may be difficult for SMEs (Small Medium Enterprises) who may lack the necessary skills and resources required to plan and conduct an evaluation. To assist SMEs in the assistive technology market, a stand alone, decision support system was developed to assist in the planning and evaluation of their products, taking into account the resources available, nature of the product being developed and stage of the design process.