FEATURE
PARKING BRAKES
Lever brakes
Brake for
wooden chair
off
on
Parking block
SPECIAL SEATS AND WHEELCHAIRS 601
DESIGN DETAILS
There are many brake designs.
This one is from Healthlink
Worldwide. Two others are on
p. 623.
SIDE VIEW
ADVANTAGES
• takes little space
• fairly easy to use if made
right (which often they
are not)
push
handle
out
and up
catch
weld
pivot
metal
plate
washer
split pin
Brakes on wheelchairs are
for keeping the chair from
rolling when getting in or
out, or stopped on a hill.
The simplest form
of brake is a
parking block that
keeps the wheel
from turning.
• easy to make, requires no
welding, and is cheap
• If the child usually only
gets in and out of the
chair in one or two places
in the home, blocks in
these places may be all
that is needed.
To ‘brake’,
roll wheel
up ramp and
into groove.
DISADVANTAGES
• needs welding and
skill to make
• Homemade
brakes often give
problems—yet it
is important that
chairs have them
if possible.
• a heavy, awkward
object to move
from place to
place
• not practical
outside the house
(or in it)
• have to tilt child
to one side to
‘park’ chair
HANDRIMS FOR PUSHING
using thin
metal tubing
(cane or wood
have also
been used)
Cut down this line
before removing from
jig. Weld ends.
Designs taken from
Healthlink Worldwide.
See p. 604.
jig for
bending tube
Wrap tube around
several times to
make several
rims at once.
• Handrims help keep hands
clean. (Otherwise child
has to push on tire.)
• especially important
where there are very
dirty paths and roads
tire Attach rim with
metal brackets
like this.
bracket
rim
Handrim grip improvers
rim
pegs
wood or
rubber
tube
rim
Cut a piece of
rubber hose
lengthwise and
tape it onto
rim. cut
rim
hose
Posts can be
bolted or welded
bolt nut onto rim.
metal post
welded
onto rim
• For child with weak
or paralyzed hands, a
smooth rim can be hard
to grip—especially
if it is chromed or
galvanized.
• Putting rough cloth tape,
a rubber hose, or many
small handles on the rim
will make pushing easier.
• Or you can wrap
the rim with a
long thin strip
of car tire inner
tube.
• Added width
makes it harder
to get through
narrow doorways.
• adds weight
• Pegs sticking out
from rims increase
width of chair.
• Pegs sometimes
cause hand
injuries— especially
when going fast
downhill.
strip of
inner tube
rim
disabled village children