pwr wchr that climbs stairs

[Blubear]

Hi All, My parents have 2 homes. One home here is Washington that has an elevator, so I am not concerned about that. But their home in Arizona has a ton of cement stairs to get to the front door. My dad was thinking that he may have to one day give up going to his beloved Arizona home because of the stair issue. I looked on line and saw a ton of power wheelchairs that can climb stairs. Have any of you tried them? Anyone recommend them? What type? From what I have seen, it looks scary, but is that just me being over protective? Thoughts and experiece please!
Hugs, Kari

 

[sadiemae]

Kari, we are getting a stair lift for our stairs, would that be possible? Lori

 

[Blubear]

No, I wish it were. Its just way to much construction. There are several sets of stairs that take you around to the back of the building just to get to the stairs that lead to my parents front door. They are upscale condos, and my dad would be mortified if they had to make any special modifications on all the stairs just because of him.

 

[Blubear]

Come on now guys, hasn't anyone here used a wheelchair that climbs stairs?

 

[BarryG]

Kari, I think that Rosella posted a link a while back to something her dad used but now that I think about it, it wasn't a power chair. It was a special stair climbing chair which allowed an attendant to take someone up and down stairs.
Sorry I cant be more help.

 

[BarryG]

Kari, here is an article that I found

Stair-climbing wheelchair comes to a halt - Health care- msnbc.com

 

[Ratman55]

Kari,
Sorry, I have been out for a while. I have seen them. Some appear to be of a garage- homemade variety, but I believe there is a version out there, albeit expensive, that is on the market. I will help you search and let you know. It seems there was some reference to one on this forum back in December. There was a Japanese or Chinese stair climber/wheelchair, perhaps the one that Barry posted. That news item is a year old. I wonder if we can find any more info on it.
Happy Pesach/Passover
Jay

 

[Blubear]

Hi Jay and Barry, Well....hummmm......I saw a stair climbing wheelchair on u-tube and looked pretty cool going up the stairs, but....going down it had this gadget thing that comes out like the bottom of an army tank and he just cruised down the stairs. The thing with that one though, it that all I can imagine is a malfunction and there goes my dad flying down the stairs in a heap. I hope there is something good out there that is better than that. I know that power wheelchairs are expensive...remember someone posted that they just got their "Cadillac" priced wheelchair for about 25k? Money isnt an issue for my dad, but the freedom to go to his home in AZ is a big deal for him. I would rather him have a chair that climbs stairs but also requires someone there to help step by step. That would seem safer. I hope we can find something out there!
Thanks for helping me guys!
Hugs, Kari
and....Happy Pesach/Passover to both of you too!

 

[John1]

Kari,

You may be thinking about the iBot wheelchair. It was invented by Dean Kamen, who also invented the Segway. Unfortunately he sold the rights to Johnson and Johnson Ltd. They spent about 5 years finally bringing it to market in about 2007. It is amazing. It uses gyros to balance on two wheels, will climb up to 20 stairs, curbs, has 4 wheel drive and is a house wheelchair and all-terrain machine all in one. Medicare refused to fund it because it is expensive (around $26,000). I had planned to get one when I reached the point a scooter wouldn't do me anymore. Unfortunately, Johnson and Johnson discontinued their sales and manufacture last year, citing poor sales. I was astounded because it is light years more advanced than anything out there. It is possible that your dad might find one for sale used. J&J will support it until 2013.

Google "iBot video" and you will get lots of hits. Here is one.

Theresa Test Drives An IBot - Video

 

[Blubear]

Wow, that was way cool! Stupid Medicare wouldnt accept it! That just stinks! I will do more researching on this one. Thanks so much!
Hugs, Kari