Nice Newspaper Story on the iBot

[Brooster]

From the Chicago Sun Times:

http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/...s-chair02.html

"IBot wheelchair means end of getting looked down on"

April 2, 2004

By Jim Ritter, Health Reporter

Michael D'Arcy just bought himself a $29,000 wheelchair that can climb stairs, travel over grass and gravel and raise users to eye level.

For the first time since he was paralyzed in a motorcycle accident three years ago, D'Arcy will be able to go down to his basement woodworking shop and see his son's room.

He'll be able to see friends in their homes and even go hunting in the woods.

But the best part is that he will be 6 feet tall again.

"My biggest problem is being 4 feet 4 inches and constantly looking up to people," he said. "When you're constantly at that lower level, it definitely works on your mind."

D'Arcy's wheelchair is called Independence iBot 3000 Mobility System. It was invented by Dean Kamen, inventor of the Segway Human Transporter.

When the Food and Drug Administration approved iBot last year, Commissioner Mark McClellan said it "represents a breakthrough in wheelchair technology."

D'Arcy, who lives in Plainfield, is the first Chicago area customer, and he learned how to use iBot on Thursday at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.

IBot gives users "freedom they've never had before," said Rehab Institute therapist Jessica Pedersen.

IBot has four wheels in the back. Push a button, and the chair rises up and balances on two wheels, with the benefit of gyroscopes and an on-board computer.

D'Arcy is general manager of a car dealership, and he's looking forward to talking with customers and employees at their level. When he goes grocery shopping, he won't have to keep asking people to get products off high shelves. And he'll finally be able to reach the ice cream in his freezer.

It now takes four strong people to haul D'Arcy up porch steps of friends' homes. Sometimes, he has to visit them in their garages. IBot will enable him to climb steps by himself, provided there's a railing to grab. He will face backward going up and forward going down.

The wheelchair has a top speed of 6 mph. The batteries last all day and are recharged at night.

Two million Americans use wheelchairs, but it's unclear how many could afford the $29,000 iBot.

"It's a huge obstacle," Pedersen said.

The manufacturer, Independence Technology, said a few insurance companies pay for iBot, and the company is trying to persuade Medicare and Medicaid to cover it.










Brooster