PogesKnows

Hi all,

I don't know too much about bikes (or in this case trikes) but I thought maybe some bike enthusiasts might be able to help me out. I am an undergraduate senior in biomedical engineering and for senior design my team is attempting to build a pedaled wheelchair (bear with me on this one). For stroke patients hoping to recover from partial paralysis or elderly patients, it has been shown in various tests that a pedaling exercise can rehabilitate patients, hence the pedaled wheelchair. The product could also be targeted for the elderly who may have trouble walking but may have better ability pedaling a wheelchair to get exercise.

We are modifying an existing wheelchair by adding a pedal system that can be stored beneath the chair, that then uses a chain driven system to drive an axle between the back wheels. The problem we have run into is the turning. The turning system will work by using two brakes, one on each wheel, to turn the chair. But to do this, the rear wheels must turn independently. We are hoping to find rear wheel differential to take from an existing product and use for our senior design project.

We thought that our best bet would be to try and find one on an adult tricycle system (one of my teammates found a patent for one at some point). I've put out some feelers to different companies but in the mean time I thought I might ask elsewhere. Does anyone know of any adult tricycles that use something like this?

Thanks for any responses!