Scottish designer Phoenix Instinct has developed a lightweight wheelchair with a movable axle position that automatically adjusts the chair's centre of gravity to stop overbalancing.
Developed with the help of a $500,000 development grant from the Mobility Unlimited Challenge, which is run by the Toyota Mobility Foundation together with Nesta's Challenge Prize Centre, the Phoenix i wheelchair uses smart technology to improve its basic functionality.
"The wheelchair is proven to be the most viable means of getting around if you're paralysed," said Phoenix Instinct founder Andrew Slorance.
"However, wheelchair technology hasn't evolved since the 80s, while smart systems have transformed products all around us," he told Dezeen. "Prosthetics have been revolutionised in function, appearance and perception, while the wheelchair has remained the inanimate awkward device the prosthetic used to be. It's now time for the wheelchair to evolve."

Made of lightweight carbon-fibre, the wheelchair's wheels are mounted on an adjustable axle that can move forward or backwards depending on the user's position.
It is connected to sensors that detect whether the user is leaning forward or back and moves the axle position to adjust its centre of gravity accordingly. This means that the wheelchair can be both stable and agile while reducing the risk of falling backwards.

"Weight distribution is key to wheelchair agility and stability," explained Sl...