But there is NO product upon which to base all these opinions you are forming. That is what I don’t get. Everyone else grasps what? That is impossible to modify an aisle chair so that is able to be propelled by the user? And how did they arrive at such knowledge? Has there been attempts? Have there been models that didn’t work? Where is this certainty coming from? It’s bizarre…
post 171
Hahaha. LMAO. You are stunning. So to you, every single person who uses a wheelchair is the same. Has the same level of functioning and ability and has the same need for assistance in all scenarios, huh? I submit that I could probably handle turbulence on a flight, evne if “left to my own devices” a smidge better than even yourself.
Post 171 is nothing different. For the most part, he is speculating about a MOTORIZED aisle chair. I never suggested such a thing. He does mention the hand crank option, but again, speculation. And that wasnt even my idea, it was mentioned here by another poster. He is going on about something that I didn’t propose. It seems like a common theme in this thread. And again, even with what he IS talking about, where’s his evidence?
This may well be true, but the problem is that the regulations (and I bet they are regulations) are made to cater to the lowest common denominator. In this sort of situation, who is going to judge which person needs help and which doesn’t? Is that something that can be left to a flight attendant? I wouldn’t think they have anything close to the experience neccessary. Should it be left to the individual? I also don’t think so. So what do you have? A set of rules that cater to most situations. Sure, you, as a macho body builder gets a little (and it is only a little) caught out by them. But also, what % of those in wheelchairs are in your, rather unique, situation?
By following your argument, you may as well say that speed limits need not be observed by Al Unser Jnr as his driving skill renders them unneccessary. Is this a sutuation you want arising?
And you are a party of one who expects the world to bend to your desires.
The airline has a solution that meets the requirement of everyone needing transport to the bathroom as well as the safety of the other passengers. There is zero reason for them to build a chair for every handicapped passenger with a whim because at the end of the day it still needs a flight attendant to operate it. This has been explained to you 12 ways to Sunday. Not only are you not capable of returning to your seat in an emergency you are a danger to everybody else on the plane.
From a technical standpoint, it would probably be pretty trivial to put a motor on one of those aisle chairs linked earlier, and then, if it’s got a motor, it would be easy enough to install remote control, uh, controls, operated by a handheld device. At which point you could hand the controls to whomever is sitting in the chair and let them steer. You don’t need a lot of horsepower to move a chair twenty feet. Take one of those motorized bar stool kits to your local robotics club and they could probably set you up in an hour.
But it doesn’t matter because the FAA is not going to approve driving a remote control go-kart - with no seat belts, mind you! - down the aisle of a turbulent plane, even if you could find a pilot who’d allow the infernal device on his ship (and you wouldn’t.)
And how do you steer it backwards? on a trip to the bathroom the operator would be going backwards either coming or going.
Who is going to certify the passenger to operate a mechanical device on an airplane?
Where is this mechanized chair going to be located? Next the chair used for the other passengers needing assistance?
These are only a few questions that need answering.
No problem. The remote control device will have a reverse mode. All you need are helmets with rear-view mirrors on either side and, perhaps, a simple beeping device to warn pedestrians that The Chair is in reverse. If necessary, flight attendants could be trained to say, “'Mon back” with appropriate hand gestures.
Yeah. That’s sort of my point. What I’m saying is, the practical suggestions he wants are the easy part. We have the technology. We can put a man on the moon - we can motor a man down a short aisle. It’s all the *other *questions he needs to be addressing: cost, aggravation for the other passengers, turbulence, safety, the reality that most wheelchair passengers are not bodybuilders, space, storage, seatbelts, etc. He wants us to give him practical suggestions for what he should do. How about he give us some practical answers for how he plans to address the above problem.
What’s his solution for when someone refuses to wear a seatbelt and falls out of the chair and doesn’t have the strength to lift himself?
What’s his solution for someone who overestimates his strength and goes slowly slowly slowly turning a hand crank, inching along, and holding everyone else up?
What’s his solution for paying for these devices?
What’s his plan for when a chair user inevitably runs into someone?
What’s his plan to ensure that everyone who wants to use the chair is competent to do so?
Building the chair is easy. It’s all this other stuff he needs to answer.
I don’t see where you have a complaint. Ask to be seated adjacent to the lavatory and IF you need help getting into and out of your seat to get to it, ask for it.
Assuming it is possible to engineer and implement a system that you would approve of, the cost of it is going to be somewhat more than zero. The airlines are not going to eat this cost, they’re going to pass it on to the passengers. Just how much do you think I should have to pay more for my ticket in order to accommodate your perceived needs?
There are urine collection catheters for men (which I presume you are - if not, please let us know) that resemble a condom with a hole on the end, which connects to a tube, which connects to a bag that can, as you note, be discreetly hidden under clothes. Problem solved. I know of these, because my disabled husband used them for decades, and still keeps a spare one around for occasions when it is useful. It is non-invasive and easily applied.
Similar devices are used by able-bodied pilots on long-duration flights where no bathrooms are available.
Women have it a little tougher, but there are solutions for them as well.
From the linked images of these chairs, I don’t think they’d have the space for the gearing necessary to make a push-pull or crank system usable by non-bodybuilders.
For that matter, because of the aisle width constraint, the propulsion mechanism would have to be between your legs and retractable (so you could get into it), since if there were room to the sides there’d be room for standard drive wheels.
Let’s phrase this differently: any wheelchair design proposed must be able to accommodate all wheelchair users, as the current design does already. Based on what I’ve said above, and other constraints (motorized is probably out due to the hazards of a large battery, as said above), I don’t think this is possible at our current level of engineering.
You’re welcome to disagree, but at that point you probably ought to find someone who can do mechanical engineering to sketch it up, as you’ve got engineers in this thread telling you that what you’re proposing is mechanically infeasible at this time.
You got the wrong guy, dude, it’s the airlines are the ones that seem to think there’s not (yet) a cost-effective solution, else why would they refuse to have it? You seem to assume nobody’s even trying, I say maybe they are and failing.
I think part of the problem is YOU, sir. You don’t seem to grasp that yes, you ARE disabled, there are things you can no longer do on your own.
I’ve flown disabled passengers in small airplanes where they had to be physically lifted and out of the airplane. No, no one likes that. Being a cripple sucks, as my husband frequently states. On the other hand, he finds being assisted in and out of certain situations (and yes, sometimes that means being lifted by someone else) more dignified than literally falling on his face or pissing his pants because he’s too stubborn to ask for help getting to the bathroom. He’s also had the joy of getting into an airplane on his own then finding he can’t get back out of it without assistance. I tell ya, shopping for a family airplane wasn’t fun with having to consider that, though looking back we occasionally have a good chuckle over some of the sillier incidents.
So, I’m sorry you’re butt-hurt because of the limitations you face. It’s not fair, you’re right on that point, but it’s an unfair thing I don’t see any way to fix short of restoring your ability to walk. You viewpoint that being assisted by the able-bodied is somehow “humiliating” is not universally shared by disabled people.
Oh, no, not at all - I fully support your right to express your feelings on this subject, I just don’t agree with you.
Hey, come up with something better if you don’t like the current solution(s). No one has more motivation than you.
And able-bodied people leaving a hospital after treatment are required to ride in wheelchairs that they absolutely don’t need. “I can walk!” - “Oh, no - hospital policy requires you to be wheeled to the door!” Really. Yes, sometimes you have to conform to a policy that doesn’t quite fit the needs of your dignity.
Well, hell, get a pilot’s license and do your own flying. You’ll be the pilot and in charge. You can make the rules and protect your dignity as you see fit.
Of course, the airplanes within reach of purchase for less-than-millionaires don’t have bathrooms. You’ll definitely be spared the indignity of an aisle chair on those.
Yeah, you look pretty damn buff.
Hey, I think I may have found the perfect solution!
In that case, I hope you complained to the airline, or considered a different airline - some are known for being cheap, some are more expensive, but with good personnell.
First, although IAMNAEngineer, I think that would require a load of expensive re-designing and testing to make sure that the seat doesn’t come loose during turbulences or crashes, yet can easily be detached when desired. And since people in wheelchair can be accomodated, I doubt there is much push to spend millions to improve things.