Hesperian Health Guides
Healthlink Wood Wheelchair
HealthWiki > Disabled Village Children > Chapter 66: Designs for 6 Basic Wheelchairs > Healthlink Wood Wheelchair
(Modified from Personal Transport for Disabled People — Design and Manufacture.)
| The Healthlink wheelchair is built onto an ordinary child’s wood chair. Measurements should be adjusted to the child’s needs. |  |
 A webbed plastic seat lets air move through it and can be easily cleaned. |
 It uses standard 20” x 1¾" bicycle wheels and axles. |
Basic carpentry tools are needed to build this wheelchair. It can be made in one day
by someone with basic carpentry skills. The local blacksmith may be able to help weld
together the wheel supports if you cannot. It is easy to add positioning aids or make other
adaptations.
AXLES
 |
Weld axles to ends of a steel tube 2 cm longer than the chair is wide. |  |
NO  |
Weld axle perfectly straight. | YES  |
| Pass axle tube through holes drilled through sideboards and front chair legs. |  |
WARNING!
Use standard bicycle axles this way only for children under 20 kg (50 lbs). A heavier child, or rough use, will bend or break the axle.
For children over 20 kg, use a stronger axle. Or support the bicycle axle from both sides.
CASTERS
 This backward extension distributes weight better and keeps chair from tipping backward on hills. |
Two back casters are more stable and make it easier for the wheelchair to go up curbs.   |
For brake designs, see:
For other pictures and models of the Healthlink wheelchair, see:
- "Making Sure Aids and Procedures Do More Good Than Harm"
- "Factory-made or homemade wheelchairs?"
- "Footrests"
- "Parking Brakes"
- "Examples of locally made wheelchairs".