SBIR Phase I: A portable, powered lift to instantly increase independence of all manual wheelchair users

这项小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目的广泛影响是提高了轮椅使用者的独立性、生产力和生活质量。该项目解决了与使用轮椅的人（仅在美国就有400万人）的移动性相关的重要国家和全球挑战，这些挑战不断受到许多日常挑战的危害。通过开发一种价格合理且随时可用的售后配件，能够增加手动轮椅的高度，该项目旨在建立一个更加平等、包容和无障碍的社会。这项拟议中的技术将使坐轮椅的人能够面对面交谈，并提高他们的工作效率，从而极大地增强他们的自信心。这将增加他们的独立性，使他们能够到达以前无法到达的表面和空间。与此同时，新的解决方案将减少由于从轮椅上不安全伸手而导致的摔伤。用户将节省与伤害和昂贵的房屋改造相关的费用。最后，拟议中的技术将为雇主带来巨大的机会，因为它可以提高残疾工人的生产力，并大大降低适应工作环境和提供法律要求的“合理便利”的成本。该项目旨在探索解决所有使用手动轮椅的人的高度相关问题的可行性，该设备可以安装在所有标准的超轻型轮椅上，平衡诸如重量、升降高度和操作便利性等关键因素。拟议的第一阶段活动将产生第一个功能原型，能够作为测试和未来商业化的概念证明。工程工作将首先致力于硬件组件的选择和集成，以及设备控制软件的开发和部署。将实施基于传感器的控制方案，以实现安全，平稳和快速的升降体验。一旦硬件组装完成，固件部署完毕，新设备将在实验室环境中进行测试，以确保当它连接到标准轮椅上时，不会改变轮椅的稳定性。这不仅是未来FDA批准的必要先决条件，也是使设备为志愿者的未来测试（第二阶段）做好准备，更一般地说，使其成为通用售后配件的商业化。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is the increased independence, productivity, and quality of life of people who use wheelchairs. This project addresses important national and worldwide challenges related to the mobility of people who use wheelchairs (4 million in the US alone), which is continuously jeopardized by many daily challenges. Through the development of an affordable and ready-to-use aftermarket accessory capable of increasing the height of manual wheelchairs, the project is oriented towards a more equal, inclusive, and accessible society. The proposed technology will dramatically boost the self-confidence of people who use wheelchairs by enabling face-to-face conversations and improving their productivity at work. It will increase their independence by allowing them to reach surfaces and spaces that were previously out of their reach. At the same time, the new solution will reduce injuries resulting from tips and falls due to unsafe reaching from their wheelchair. Users will save costs associated with injuries and expensive home retrofits. Finally, the proposed technology will represent a huge opportunity for employers because of increased productivity for their workers with disabilities and dramatically reduced costs adapting the work environment and providing "reasonable accommodations", as required by law. The proposed project seeks to explore the feasibility of solving height-related problems among all people who use manual wheelchairs with an electronic and affordable device that can be retrofitted on all standard ultralight wheelchairs, balancing crucial factors such as weight, height of lift, and ease of operation. The proposed Phase I activities will generate the first functioning prototype capable of serving as a proof-of-concept for testing and future commercialization. Engineering efforts will be first dedicated to the selection and integration of hardware components and to the development and deployment of the device control software. A sensor-based control scheme will be implemented to enable a safe, smooth, and fast lift experience. Once the hardware is assembled and the firmware is deployed, the new device will be tested in laboratory settings to ensure that, when it is attached to a standard wheelchair, it does not alter the wheelchair's stability. This is an essential prerequisite not only for future FDA approval, but also to make the device ready for future testing (Phase II) with volunteers and, more generally, to enable its commercialization as a universal aftermarket accessory.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.