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A Smarter Wheelchair

The design of the wheelchair has changed little since it was invented in the late 18th century. But now a group of young Swiss innovators has designed a revolutionary new mobility device.

‘Scewo’, the ‘wheelchair of the future’, can climb stairs thanks to a set of retractable rubber tracks, allowing users to reach places that would otherwise have been inaccessible.

Stairs are climbed with the user’s back to the staircase, and descended while facing forward, says Thomas Gemperle, one of ten students who developed the Scewo in partnership with Zurich’s Federal Institute of Technology and University of the Arts.

The chair has many other novel features, too. For example, users can steer it simply by shifting their body weight without the fear of the chair tipping over. Gemperle says he hopes the Scewo’s unique qualities will make people look at users “with admiration instead of pity”.

A commercial launch is planned for the middle of next year.