Brief Summary
This video provides five key tips for power chair users, aiming to improve their control, safety, and overall experience. The tips cover joystick handling, controller positioning, using tilt functions on inclines, avoiding overcompensation in tight spaces, and understanding the turning characteristics of different drive base types (mid-wheel, front-wheel, and rear-wheel).
- Proper joystick handling improves control.
- Correct controller positioning enhances posture and chair control.
- Using tilt functions on inclines increases comfort and safety.
- Avoiding overcompensation in tight spaces prevents erratic movements.
- Understanding drive base characteristics optimizes turning maneuvers.
Holding the joystick at its base provides more stability and control over the power chair. Holding it at the top can make movements exaggerated and reduce control. By holding the joystick at the base, users can achieve steadier and more precise movements.
Proper controller positioning is crucial for comfort, posture, and chair control. Ensure the controller is neither too far nor too close, and that armrests are at the correct height. Adjustments to the armrests and controller should be made to avoid reaching or scrunching up. Consulting with an engineer or seating assessor can help optimize the controller position for long-term comfort and control.
When navigating inclines such as ramps, drop curbs, or steep hills, utilize the power tilt function to maintain a level position. This allows the power chair to manage the gradient, enhancing comfort, safety, and control. By adjusting the tilt, users can align themselves with the slope, making the chair's motor work more efficiently.
Avoid exaggerated movements on the joystick, especially in tight spaces like doorways or narrow paths. Overcompensation often occurs due to panic or heightened awareness, leading to erratic chair movements. Instead, use small, controlled increments to maintain stability and prevent the chair from jumping around. If unsure, stop the chair and reassess the situation before proceeding.
Understanding the characteristics of your power chair's drive base (rear-wheel, mid-wheel, or front-wheel) is essential for effective maneuvering. Rear-wheel drive chairs require wider turns, similar to a car. Mid-wheel drive chairs have a tighter turning radius, so staying central is important to avoid clashes. Front-wheel drive chairs have a "tail" to consider, requiring users to point into corners to ensure the back of the chair clears obstacles. Practice turning maneuvers in a large space to understand how your chair operates in different situations.
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Transcript
Full transcript of “MY 5 TOP TIPS ON HOW TO DRIVE YOUR POWERCHAIR”. Click a timestamp to open the video at that moment. Need another video? Use the YouTube transcript generator.
0:00 hello everyone and welcome back to the channel my name is bennett and i'm from cms and today's video i'm going to be giving you my five top tips and tricks on how to drive your power chair this could be handy for someone who's a first-time user getting to purchase the very first time or indeed an existing user um out of the five hopefully there's at least one that you'll be able to benefit from so here we go okay so tip on trick number one is hold your controller at the base of the joystick typically most people will hold the joystick at the top and with their thumb and finger and what you'll find in that situation is that it will be extremely top-heavy which means that every action
0:45 and input you put in will be over exaggerated meaning that you'll have less control over the chair if you have your hand at the base of the joystick you'll find that it's a lot steadier and you'll have a lot more control over the chair tip number two have your controller in the right position in most chairs and in most situations you've got extremely extreme amount of adjustment available to you and that's both in the armrest and also the actual controller itself and make sure that you are not reaching for that controller or vice versa make sure that you're not having to scrunch up and your arm is your shoulder is quite far behind you make sure so it's not too close not too far away and make sure your armrests aren't too
1:33 high or low either all of these will have an effect on how you control your chair you may have had a chair for quite a long time and it may not have been initially in the right position you've kind of got used to it now but i assure you posturally and also for overall control of the chair it's so important for you to get that controller in the right position so if you don't think it is get your engineer out or your your seating assessor and get those adjustments made tip number three if you have it use your tilt when you are going down an incline this is this could be a ramp a drop curb a steep hill anything like that make sure you're utilizing that power tilt get yourself level
2:19 with in relation to the gradient of the slope and get your power chest do the work you'll feel a lot more comfortable a lot safer and a lot more in control tip number four don't over compensate your inputs typically and what i find with most of my clients is that it happens when you're going through a tighter space so when you're going through a door doorway um or in between cars or close to a wall or on a footpath and the actions and the inputs seem to get greater purely because a little bit of panic and awareness sets in but it's really important to know that the controller is only doing what you're telling it to do and if you're jumping around on that joystick the contr the
3:07 chair itself will be jumping around so small increments if you ever feel unsafe or if you're unsure if you're going to fit stop the chair and take your time small increments smaller movements absolutely more control and the better experience you'll have tip number five understand your drive base and how it turns so whether you've got a mid-wheel drive front-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive chair understand those basic characteristics okay so in a rear-wheel drive chair you'll have that same sort of car mentality car style so you'll be taking wider turns so you'll be going further out and then coming in um in the for a tighter turn or with a mid-wheel
3:53 drive chair you'll then almost want to stay very central and obviously because of its fantastic turning uh turning circle or turning radius you don't want to be too close to one side um because with a mid-wheel drive chair you will clash you want to try and stay as central as possible and get yourself almost parallel to the turning point away or the access point you want to get through before you start that turn and then with a front wheel drive chair you've got to remember that you've got quite a bit behind you so you've almost got a tail to consider so you want to be pointing into that corner and making sure that the rest of the chair and when it starts that turn um isn't going to
4:39 clash with anything so best thing to do before attacking those tight situations get yourself into a large space practice those turns practice those maneuvers and truly understand how your chair is going to operate in those situations okay there you go and they are my five top top tips and tricks on how to drive your power chair uh please give them a go um and let me know how you get on uh either by leaving a comment in the comment section below or um you can follow the link to the website and you can send me a message directly and that will be in the description hopefully some of them will come in handy hopefully some of them you haven't thought about before or haven't tried before but either way let me know how
5:26 you get on please um subscribe to the channel if you haven't already and of course like the video if you have indeed liked it apart from that and thank you very much and i'll hopefully speak to you soon
