Please email me at
ddonovan@ntlworld.com if you want any more info.
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My own comments
regarding these issues...
Point 1 - Seat
"too" comfortable! Well here the manufacturers
cannot win! Seating is a personal issue. I could
not use a Recaro, for the same reason, but it offers
lateral (sideways) support that is required during
driving. Personally, I would need my normal Gel
cushion, and sling back for pressure sore prevention reasons
anyway...
Not sure if this chair allows this.
Point 2 - It IS
slow. It really cannot be any other! If
the manufacturer of the Adaptachair chose to use taller
gearing needed for say 6mph (10 kph) in this small light
chair, it would then defeat the entire object of the
chair! (Or it would suffer even less range.)
Taller gearing means bigger power drain even at slow
"manoeuvring" speeds. Because of this it would need
bigger batteries and possibly motors too, as well as a
larger "Amperage" controller. This would mean a
bigger heavier chair generally. Current technology
prevents this faster chair then without making it
"bigger". It is something that you choose, to
allow a smaller chair to drive from. Life is a
compromise! At least until battery technology
improves drastically!
Point 3 -
Armrests. Well I never saw an Adaptachair. But
there may be a problem here, but on the other hand they
are not meant to be bashed into door frames either!
On this point the jury remains out until I see one!
Point 4 -
Charging. This is the guys main problem. Again this
is a technology problem rather than an "Adaptachair"
specific one. All powerchairs with the
exception of the
iBOT
use one type or another of the common
LEAD ACID batteries. They may be Gel, or sealed, or
"dry" or AGM but all basically work the same way.
ALL of them really need at least 8 hours to charge after
use, as a minimum! Faster charging damages
batteries and shortens their life. This is especially
true of the Adaptachair as it uses small batteries to
save weight/size/space. So they tend to be discharged
"more" in a day than larger ones would.
