Mobility Quad

Joined
Nov 4, 2012
Messages
72
Location
Vancouver
Website
fauchet.tripod.com
Hi All,

Looking for suggestions/ links to other people's projects.

A friend who is ~300lbs and has severe cerebral palsy and balance problems is looking for solutions. The guy is about 6-5? and super strong, but very poor muscle co-ordination. He's broken a couch in half by sitting down too hard, and numerous chairs. He did learn to ride a bike as a kid, and was able to go really fast, but now he's in his 30's and hasn't ridden since a teen. He really wants to get out of his place and have a way of socializing with people. If he could ride over the little overpass to our local park it would really mean a lot to him. His mom just bought him an A-Linker strider thingy, but he had trouble getting on & off, it doesn't look nearly stable enough for him, nor strong enough for him. He said he wished it had a tractor seat. Throwing a leg over anything is a real challenge, ideally he could just walk sideways in front of a highish seat and sit down a bit.

I think ideally a 4 wheeler with very upright seating, seat maybe 30" off the ground, and designed for maybe 600lb including impact loads would be about right. He can't control a top speed much higher than a walking speed, so doesn't need cornering speed or stability. Efficiency and light weight aren't much of a consideration because he has tons of strength. He can park in a parkade. For exercise and reliable operation I don't think he needs electric assist. I'm thinking either industrial chain drive, belt drive, or slip-clutch to prevent him snapping the chain. Gearing would be nice, but I don't think he could operate shifters accurate enough, and normal bike deraileurs and hubs would likely get destroyed unless cushioned by a slip clutch or something. Maybe motorcycle wheels or trailer wheels for durability?

Thanks for any suggestions,
John
 

Radical Brad

Garage Hacker!
Staff member
Joined
Mar 13, 1999
Messages
6,078
Location
Kakabeka Falls, Ontario, Canada
That's quite a challenge for sure.
I would probably start with a base trike like LodeRunner.
It is somewhat high positioned, and only a single tube to get a leg over.
As for strength, the weight would be fine, and the 48 hole 20" rims would be durable enough.

For transmission, stick with the larger single speed chain, it will take it, and you really don't seem need gearing.
You could even run a single speed to a jackshaft then get a good reduction.

Brad
 
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