Scientists are one step closer to reinventing the wheel. Or, the wheelchair, that is. On November 20, the Food and Drug Administration unanimously recommended approval of the iBOT 3000, a wheelchair capable of climbing stairs. Using gyroscopes and sensors, the chair can rotate its two pairs of wheels up and down a flight of steps, thus removing one of the greatest obstacles to those unable to walk.
"But did you check out the cost? It is too expensive," exclaims Dennis C. Harper, Ph.D, a professor of pediatrics and rehabilitation at the University of Iowa's Hospitals and Clinics. "I just don't think that it is going to be widely utilized because cost is always an issue." The chair's predicted price tag-a whopping $29,000-places it in the top-end category.
Along with its prohibitive cost, Rhoda Olkin, Ph.D., a professor of clinical psychology at the California School of Professional Psychology, notes that stairs are often only the first of several problems with handicap access. Olkin has ridden in the iBOT and does find it useful, but notes that stores with step entrances also tend to have narrow isles. "Just getting in the door is not enough," she says.
