Personal mobility devices, like wheel chairs and scooters, give millions of people with varying degrees of ability a sense of freedom. Now a new generation of devices are coming off the drawing board starting with the revolutionary Segueway. Honda’s U3X kicks it up a notch. Lightweight and easy to ride it makes it highly portable. It could easily be used at a shopping mall.
A couple of weeks ago my wife and I went to visit my 96 years of fabulous-living mom. Of course we talked about age in place related stuff (she lives alone in her own home) and some things that we could do while we were there to make it safer for her.
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One day we were sitting in the kitchen, yacking it up, when her personal emergency response system (PERS) went off and did a required system check among other things. Scared the living heck out us! If you have ever heard one go off you know what I mean. It’s like an air raid drill alert.
When we calmed down that triggered a discussion about PERs. We recommended that she switch to one of the new generation of PERS a GPS/Cellular System that would allow her to be protected away from the house.
She chose the Mobile Help System that works anywhere a cell phone on the AT+T network works. That means in the car, (yes, she drives…too fast. But that’s another story.) in the store, (she does her own shopping) church, theater – you get the idea.
The super neat thing is it operates just like her old system when she’s at home. When she leaves the house she just takes the Voice Help button with her and she’s covered. No matter where she is the GPS satellite technology can pinpoint her location so the emergency response center can send help should she need it.
Check out this site http://www.mobilehelpsys.com/. Disclaimer: we do not sell or endorse this product at this time.
Meres ‘Mack’ McCarroll
From home remodels to joining together to age in place, Boomers are changing what retirement looks like.
There is a lot to be said for not having to use a car to make little trips around your community. The problem is that for some people walking has become more difficult. Especially if hills or stairs are impediments. Well, good news, the Honda Company has developed and is testing a device called “The Bodyweight Assist.”
Imagine how much easier it would be to walk around with a lighter body. That’s the effect achieved by this new device. Honda’s experimental walking assist helps support body weight and reduces the load on users legs while walking and going up and down stairs. This leads to reduced fatigue and less physical exertion.
With more than 130 patents filed for walking assistive devices Honda continues to test them in every day conditions to evaluate their effectiveness. They believe that eventually use of these (and other mobility devices) will be common for everyday activities around the house, neighborhood and a real plus for sight seeing.
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