Portable Lift for Transferring Wheelchair Patients to Elevated Vehicle

Abstract

This project is to design a portable wheelchair lift to assist people in transferring from their wheelchair into a high vehicle seat (such as in a car, minivan or SUV). The idea would be to raise the wheelchair by some fairly minimal amount so that the person can easily transfer out of the chair and into the vehicle. However, the lift/ramp will need to be highly portable and able to be safely and securely used in close proximity to a vehicle. Dr. Leonard has explored throughout the country and with various vendors and found that no such device is currently available.