The phrase “reinventing the wheel” usually refers to efforts made by people which are unnecessary, simply because the wheel is already considered to be perfect. However one inventor by the name of Sam Pearce thought that the wheel could do with reinventing and came up with the idea of Loopwheels.
These wheels were originally designed for bicycles but soon it attracted the attention of wheelchair makers where the wheels are now used in for some models. The idea came to Pearce when he saw a woman pushing a stroller up onto a curb. “As the woman got to a curb, she didn’t lift the front wheels and the baby was shot forward. If the wheel hits the curb at the wrong angle it’s useless. So I just wondered, why can’t you put the suspension into the wheel?”
Pearce then went to an archery shop where after 70 iterations, they finally settled on a design that would work. Like we said it was originally intended for use on bicycles but it was quickly applied to wheelchairs as well. This is no doubt very useful since those in wheelchairs absorb shock with their entire bodies, but with these wheels, bumps will be smoothened out and it will also do away with the “road buzz”.
It’s a great idea as you can see in the video above, but unfortunately costs are a bit prohibitive to its widespread adoption. It costs about $2,000 per wheel but according to Pearce, they’re working on refining their manufacturing technique to bring it down to a few hundred dollars.
Filed in ..