Why Aluminium Power Wheelchair Is Suitable for High Frequency Daily Use

To users who use their electric wheelchair daily, whether it is in the morning, afternoons or evenings, the chair has to go through incessant starts and stops, sharp turns, folding and hours of sitting weight. Not all frame materials can resist this amount of abuse. Steel rusts and wearies. Carbon fiber is tough yet costly to repair. Aluminium is the best combination of daily usability, manageable weight and long term value. At Ningbo Baichen Medical Devices Co. Ltd., we have been producing thousands of aluminium power wheelchairs to be used by high frequency users. The four reasons as to why aluminium is the suitable mixture to use in our daily life are given below.

Excellent Fatigue Resistance for Repeated Loading

Wheelchair frame, cyclic stress is experienced every time you sit down, roll over a bump or climb a curb. Materials may be developing micro cracks and ultimately fail after thousands of cycles. Steel is heavy yet with good fatigue strength. Carbon fiber is good yet expensive.

A well-designed and heat treated aluminium alloys have very good fatigue resistance. The T6 heat treatment of our aluminium power wheelchairs is done following the welding process that removes any stresses that remain and recover the maximum strength of the alloy. This is to say that the frame can be loaded and unloaded on a daily basis without any cracks forming over years. Aluminium offers as much durability as steel (without the weight penalty) to users with weighing 100-120 kg and spending 10-14 hours in the chair each day.

Lightweight Design Reduces User and Caregiver Strain

The frequent use High frequency use implies that you will have to lift, fold, and move the chair frequently- possibly several times a day. A heavy steel wheelchair (30-45 kg) is very tiring both to the user and any caregiver.

The power wheelchair we manufacture is a normal aluminium, which typically weighs 20-25 kg, which is about 30-40% less than a comparable steel-built. That is a vast difference of 10-15 kg when you are putting the chair into the trunk of your car after a long day or when you are hustling it up a flight of stairs. Less weight also implies reduced fatigue on the motors and battery and increases their service life. When you sit on a chair on a daily basis, every kilogram that you save brings you a better life.

Corrosion Resistance for Daily Exposure

Exposure to rain, sweat, spilled drink, bathroom humidity and winter salts on the road are daily. Steel frames are totally dependent on paint or powder coating. Scratches on that coating are sure to come--indeed they must come every day--and rust sets in at once, undermining the frame.

A protective layer of oxide forms naturally on aluminium and prevents corrosion even when scratched. We also use electrostatic powder coating (80-100 microns) to finish our aluminium power wheelchairs, which provides further protection, but the metal beneath the coating will not rust in case the coating is damaged. This implies that your everyday driver will remain safe and dependable over the years even in wet or coastal conditions.

Predictable Maintenance and Repair Costs

High-frequency users cannot afford weeks of down time waiting to be supplied with replacement parts or intricate repairs. When steel frames fail, they tend to bend or crack in such a manner that will need professional welding. Frames made of carbon fiber are hard and costly to fix (they usually have to be replaced altogether).

Qualified technicians can repair aluminium frames through the normal TIG welding methods. Replacement (axle bracket, footrest hangers, anti-tip bars) are easily available and inexpensive. Our aluminium power wheelchairs are modular in design and thus the caster is replaced or the damaged side frame is replaced without scratching off the whole chair. Repairability is a feasible benefit of aluminium to daily users who require their chair back in a short amount of time.

Conclusion

Aluminium power wheelchairs can be used in high frequency daily living as it has excellent fatigue resistance, lightweight mobility, natural corrosion resistance, and predictive cost of repair. They are the most viable option among those who require a daily driver that is reliable and yet not costly like carbon fiber or heavy like steel.

Ningbo Baichen Medical Devices Co., Ltd. produces aluminium power wheelchairs with 60 frame processing machines, robotic welder, and 4 assembly lines. Get in touch with us and discover the aluminium chair designed to suit your daily life.