Scewo

Scalevo, now Scewo is a wheelchair that can climb stairs and balance on two wheels on flat ground.

Inspiration

Wheelchair drivers are confronted with unique challenges in their daily life, due to their limited mobility. In older buildings and in cities with insufficient infrastructures stairs are one of the biggest obstacles they might encounter. This is why we set out to create a wheelchair that would improve the life of disabled people and give them the mobility that everyone deserves.

How It Works

Our wheelchair combines two well known systems into one spectacular device. On one hand rubber tracks are used, which offer optimal grip on difficult terrain, on the other hand sturdy wheels are implemented that grant mobility and freedom on flat ground. On the stairs the two tracks are folded out to adjust to the angle of the stairs. The track material was specifically built for stairs, which gives us the desired grip and safety. Once the wheelchair reaches the top of the stairs two small wheels are extended in the back, which prevent the chair from tilting over. On flat ground the wheelchair balances on the two large wheels. These allow it to turn on spot and to move through tight spaces.

Stages of Development

The idea to build a stair climbing wheelchair originated from a student named Beni Winter. With his enthusiasm he rallied nine other scholars of the ETH Zurich and the ZHdK to join him on this venture. In the beginning there were many creative ideas on how to master this challenge. Stairs should be climbed using wheels, legs or even springs. In the end two rubber tracks were chosen, which guarantee maximal grip on the stairs. For driving on flat ground two large wheels were built in. The wheelchair balances on them, which makes the chair very agile and adds an aspect that will interest young drivers. To test these functions prototypes of the tracks and the balancing system were built. With these it could be proven that stairs can be climbed with this concept and that balancing is a safe and exciting way to move on flat ground. The goal of this project was to show that it is possible to build a wheelchair that can climb stairs and is useful in daily life. This goal was achieved very successfully. And while commercialization was not the original goal, with what the team has achieved so far anything is possible in the future.

I think that this new wheelchair could be the start of something great for wheelchair users, I have personal experience with people who need a wheelchair and so I know how difficult it can be to go to different places because of restrictions. However the development of products like this can have a huge impact on their lives and would benefit so many people. The idea behind it I think is genius and is a very user centered design. Making the lives of people around us better is something that I want to be able to do as a result of doing a Product Design degree, and because of people like Benji Winter and others I have inspiration to do so.