Assessment of Vibrations During Manual Wheelchair Propulsion Over Selected Sidewalk Surfaces
By Wolf, Erik, MS; Cooper, Rory A., PhD; Dobson, Annmarie, OTR/L; Fitzgerald, Shirley, PhD; Ammer, William A., BS; RESNA 26th International Annual Conference 2003,Publication Date: 2003
Study conducted to evaluate potentially dangerous manual wheelchair vibrations experienced when traversing interlocking concrete pavement. Ten non-disabled participants propelled a manual wheelchair over six pavement surfaces. A poured concrete sidewalk with a brushed finish was used as a control, while three of the remaining surfaces were constructed of interlocking concrete pavement. The final two surfaces were fired clay brick. A rigid frame manual wheelchair was used to collect data from the sidewalk surfaces. Vibration data were collected from the seat and footrests of the wheelchair while the participants propelled over surfaces 18 times at random. The participants traveled at 1 meter per second in all of the tests. Results indicate that interlocking concrete pavement surfaces can cause potentially injurious vibrations. The authors contend that future studies need to examine a broader range of sidewalk surfaces. Studies should also be conducted with people who use wheelchairs on a regular basis to obtain more accurate results.
Published by: Rehabilitation Engineering & Assistive Technology Society of North America (RESNA) (Website:http://www.resna.org)
