Clothing Needs for Wheelchair Users: A Systematic Literature Review

The aim of this study was to identify the clothing needs of wheelchair users using relevant literatures in a global scale and to design a method to classify the clothing needs into a unified system, in order to generate a map of wheelchair users’ clothing needs with the information from multiple resources. The paper reviewed the previous studies about clothing needs and preference of wheelchair users. A three-tier screening was designed to extract main findings from the relevant literature. Content analysis and statistical analysis were used to integrate the information and identify implications. Information was categorized to represent the attributes of the clothing needs. The paper provides comprehensive insights about the specific barriers and abstract demands about the clothing needs of wheelchair users regarding their preference for apparel products. Eight essential attributes relating to the clothing needs of wheelchair users were identified: functional needs, fit attribute fabric and fiber, safety issue, aesthetic needs, expressive needs, quality of life, and extrinsic attributes. The attributes were classified into two general domains, reflecting the physical challenges and psychological desires of wheelchair users.

Research on Travel Preferences of Wheelchair Users in Barrier-Free Environments and Improvement Strategies for Adaptive Urban Roads

The construction of a barrier-free environment is an important measure that guarantees the safety,right-of-way,and interests of the disabled,the elderly,and other mobility disadvantaged groups.It is also an indispensable part of the low-carbon urban transportation and a necessary way to protect the rights of mobility disadvantaged groups in green travel.In this paper,the researchers conducted life log surveys on the travels of 10 wheelchair users residing in Beijing with IoT Inspector,a self-developed,wheelchairmountable intelligent sensing device.Wheelchair users’travel preferences and reasons were then analyzed using the image and textual data from the surveys.Combined with a mapping workshop,a comparative analysis was performed on the bumpiness of sidewalk paving materials.The study found that wheelchair travelers’preferred non-motor lanes over sidewalks;substandard curb ramps,unleveled tree pools,limited access widths,and bumpy pavement were the main problems faced by wheelchair users in sidewalk accessibility.In addition,the study explores the inclusive needs and challenges of non-motorized right-of-way for new transportation means at urban planning and traffic management levels.Based on multi-sourced data,this paper discusses the possibility of assessing urban barrier-free environment and representing a narrative of the needs of mobility disadvantaged groups,so as to provide practical experience and technical support to the improvement strategies of adaptive roads.

Study on Characteristics of the Wheelchair-User Combination

To summarize the characteristics of wheelchair-user combination, this paper studied wheelchairs, wheelchair users, nursing staffs and interaction relationship between them. Firstly, the findings of some research on wheelchairs and wheelchair users were investigated, and the studies in four aspects of wheelchairs and their accessories, wheelchair users, wheelchairs and wheelchair users (man-machine system), and skills training for the performance of wheelchair were reviewed. Then “wheelchair-user combination” was put forward based on the relationship between wheelchairs and wheelchair users in real life, and the “wheelchair-user combination” was divided into “WUs-Ws system” and “WUs-Ws-NSs system” according to whether the nursing staffs were needed. Finally, this paper analytically studied the characteristics of wheelchair users, characteristics in use of wheelchair and characteristics of nursing staffs, as well as put forward the characteristics of the wheelchair-user combination.

Office Furniture Design for Wheelchair User

There are an estimated 1.19 million wheelchair users in Spain. People use wheelchairs for a variety of reasons, the most common one is paralysis from spinal cord injuries. Current estimates indicate there are around 504,000 people alive in Spain with spinal cord injuries. Among other reasons for using wheelchairs are： fatigue from multiple sclerosis, muscle weakness from muscular dystrophy, lower limb spasticity from cerebral palsy, and missing limbs due to amputation. People who use wheelchairs may encounter a variety of obstacles at their workstations depending on their limitations. Some possible accommodations could be adjustable height desk or table for a person who cannot work comfortably at an existing desk, accessible filing system or office supplies, and frequently used materials on most accessible shelves or drawers for a person who cannot reach upper and lower shelves and drawers. This paper presents the graphical design of a workstation for wheelchair users, in this case, technical, anthropometric, ergonomic, aesthetics and scientists aspects have been analyzed. The design of composite structure conduct to explicit safety constraints applied to office furniture requirements kept continuously current and updated as part of innovation. Finally, results are showed in a three-dimensional model.

Review on Development of Pressure Injury Prevention Fabric

Pressure injury is a common postoperative complication of wheelchair users. It has a high incidence rate and can induce sepsis and even death. The fabrics that touch patients’ skin directly have a profound impact on their skin surfaces. This review summarizes the research in the last five years on the relationship between pressure injuries and fabrics. Following the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses(PRISMA) statement, a systematic literature search is conducted in nine databases, including SCI(Web of Science), IEEE, ASTM, Taylor & Francis, ProQuest, Wiley, SpringerLink, PubMed and SAGE. The research objects, experimental equipment and survey results are investigated in this review, in which twenty-four different textiles and seven different test methodologies are involved. The test methodologies include five kinds of performance tests and two kinds of observational studies. Two studies showed that the particular fabric was helpful to reduce the pressure on the skin surface, and twelve studies revealed that the multi-layer fabric with good air permeability, heat dissipation and moisture dissipation was helpful to prevent pressure injury. This review confirms the correlation between the fabric properties and the occurrence of postoperative pressure injury in wheelchair users. Further experiments are needed to reasonably integrate the fabric characteristics of pressure injury prevention into the mass-produced pressure injury prevention clothes for wheelchair users.