WheelchairFX Lights It Up

ROCHESTER, N.Y.–According to WheelchairFX founder Tom Rapp,
wheelchair accessories such as lights and other bells and whistles
typically drain battery life. But the company’s new lights,
fashioned with LED technology, don’t cause that problem.

“You can leave them on for 40 or 50 hours and it won’t
do anything to the battery,” said Rapp, who is a
self-proclaimed “mobility guy.”
 
Rapp, a mobility specialist at Pro Rehab in Rochester, N. Y., has
spent the past 20 years in the industry, previously working at the
city’s Southside Medical Supply and at Hillside
Children’s Center as a recreational therapist.
 
When one of his patients was hit by a pickup truck last year while
crossing a street, he set about figuring out how to make her new
wheelchair more visible. The accident happened at dusk, when
visibility is normally low and “the snowbanks in Rochester
make it worse,” Rapp said. He began researching safety
lighting for wheelchairs and met with engineers to figure out how
using the LED technology could work safely.
 
Pro Rehab displayed some of Rapp’s accessorized chairs
“lit up like a Christmas tree” at several festivals,
and he showed off the lights at a wheelchair soccer practice at the
Rochester Rehabilitation Center, where he had been a volunteer. The
response was illuminating: “The kids went wild,” Rapp
said.
 
In fact, response to the lights has been so good that Rapp has
partnered with the New York State Industries for the Disabled to
assemble and distribute his company’s new lighting kits. The
lights offer flash, fade, a “million-color” option,
remote control and music reactive capabilities. Rapp said the
color-changing options were inspired by his previous work with
children. The style, safety and visibility added by the lights
“lets people feel better about being in a chair,” he
said.
 
WheelchairFX offers the lights on its Web
site, and Rapp is hopeful providers will be as excited
about the product as wheelchair users seem to be.
 
The company officially opened its doors July 1, appropriate for the
time of year since Rapp said he is working on adding other
“independence-related products,” such as turn
indicators, custom joystick covers, festive horns and even
iPod docks in headrests to keep up with the positive
response.
 
“So far,” he said, “people are
thrilled.”