Independent Wheelchair Transfers in the Built Environment: How Transfer Setup Impacts Performance Phase 2: Final Report

Backrests: The backrest design for platform 1, the first surface that participants transferred to from their WMD as seen in Table 2, was based on bench seat back supports in section 903.5 of the ADA [7].  Back supports should be a minimum of 18 inches from the seat surface to the top of the support. Three different height back supports were designed for this study; a 14-inch, a 17-inch, and a 20-inch. These heights were chosen because they range from below and above the current minimum requirement. They were designed to be easily added and taken off of the station by sliding them in and out of two circular slots located in the scissor lift table top. Each backrest was also designed to have a 5^o angle for comfort.