Paraplegic man develops wheelchair for users in developing countries

He was always an inventor at heart. When he was a teenager, he came up with a design for an electronic gadget to help blind people from his community to see. However, “an (inventor) who doesn’t get down on the same level (as the people for which his is designing) is not likely to be very successful,” Ralf said.

After an accident in 1966, Ralf became paraplegic. This inspired him to re-invent the wheelchair. He wanted to develop a wheelchair that would work in every environment and that would also be accessible to anyone.

During a trip to Nicaragua, in the late 70s, the engineer met three young men who shared the same wheelchair, as they couldn’t afford one for each. One of them asked Ralf to help him fix his high-tech wheelchair, battered from the rugged terrain. This also motivated Ralf to start teaching wheelchair riders how to build and maintain wheelchairs. Then Ralf co-founded Whirlwind Wheelchair International, which provides riders in third world countries like Kenya, Armenia, Guatemala, with the appropriate transportation for their country, lifestyle, and terrain. While the designs are state-of-the art, all parts are locally made and assembled within the country to keep costs down and maintenance easy.

And then RoughRider was born. It’s a custom-fitted wheelchair. The wide front wheels are made of solid rubber and it’s an open-source device, which is constantly revised with feedback from users from developing countries.

People from over 40 countries are using this solution, since 1980. It’s a reliable wheelchair aimed to help disabled people from different countries and conditions who can’t afford a traditional wheelchair.

Adapted from: https://myhero.com/Ralf_Hotchkiss_05

More info: https://whirlwindwheelchair.org/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9gAh2NIdCI