Improving the wheelchair travel experience
A folding wheelchair to improve ease of travel
Reinventing the wheel
The Revolve wheel is part of the Revolve Air wheelchair concept; the world’s first active wheelchair that fits the universal cabin luggage size standards. Pezy Group collaborated with Andrea Mocellin, the founder of Revolve Air, to further develop this wheel.
Vision
Traveling for people in wheelchairs proves to be a real hassle. It is simply not possible in a small car, and extremely inconvenient by train or airplane. Airlines, for example, damage thousands of wheelchairs each year.
Revolves‘ mission is to improve the ease of travel for these people. Their goal is to be the first active wheelchair certified as carryon luggage, as well as to create a one-of-a-kind and revolutionary rental space for the Revolve Air at international and domestic airports.
Collaboration with Pezy Group
Andrea Mocellin has received several international innovation awards for his Revolve Air concept. Pezy Group has invested in founding Revolve Mobility BV and has further developed the wheel into a fully functional demonstrator.
Challenges
The main challenge in this project was to design a stiff wheel that met all the requirements and standards of a regular wheelchair wheel while at the same time enabling the user to fold and unfold the wheel with the utmost ease. The innovative folding wheel solution came about after many iterations and several prototypes. The new mechanism, designed by Pezy Group, is a new patented invention.
Design solution
The Revolve Wheel occupies up to 60% less space when folded. It is made of a combination of carbon fiber-filled 3D prints, black anodized aluminum parts, and vacuum casted tire segments.
The mechanism is designed in such a way that it folds and unfolds almost automatically. The user can apply pretension with a simple turn of the hand, creating a stiff wheel ready for driving.
It is a project unlike anything we have seen before: extremely challenging, complex, and with an uncertain outcome. We are more than proud of what our team has accomplished!
Pictures: Concept testing at Toyota Europe by Storyteller Labs, together with Revolve Mobility