Importance

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Abstract

The power chair of the present invention is a vehicle which is highly maneuverable and has a high degree of usable power. It provides maximum weight distribution to the pair of driving wheels of the vehicle unit. It greatly enhances the stability and provides an overall operating envelope of greatly reduced size, allowing the use of the vehicle in confined areas. The vehicle has a pair of drive wheels rotatably about a common axis which is transverse to the forward direction of the travel of the vehicle, the drive wheels being powered by respective drive motors. The center of mass of the vehicle and passenger is substantially in the vertical plane of the axis of the drive wheels. This arrangement increases the amount of weight for traction. The alignment of the mass with the axis of the driving wheels maximizes the resistance of the vehicle to steering deviations caused by centrifugal force. Stability fore and aft is provided by castering wheels placed in front of and behind the driving wheels. The rear wheel caster is preferably attached to a vertical pivoting swing arm. The movement of this arm is controlled by a spring and shock absorber assembly. However, the rear caster may be mounted with a rigid arm. Generally, at least one of the supporting arms must be spring biased to insure that substantially all wheels of vehicle remain on the ground, and also for shock absorbing purposes.

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First Claim