The Effectiveness and Use of Seat Tilt, Backrest Recline, and Seat Elevation in Adult Powered Wheelchair Users

This study examined how adults use power wheelchair seat features such as seat tilt, backrest recline, and seat elevation, during typical daily activities. A Seat Feature Data Logger (SFDL) was attached to 11 subject's wheelchairs for 10-14 days to gather data regarding daily usage of the wheelchair and these features. Subjects occupied their wheelchairs for 12.0 ± 3.0 hours per day and transferred in/out of their wheelchairs 5.0 ± 5.3 times per day. An average of 0.7 ± 1.5 hours per day was spent in an upright position. The tilt feature was accessed 18.4 ± 14.4 times per day for 8.5 ± 5.2 hours per day, and recline was accessed 11.5 ± 8.4 times per day for 8.6 ± 4.6 hours per day. Tilt and recline were used in combination for a total of 4.8 ± 4.6 hours per day. Subjects accessed the seat elevation feature 4.3 ± 4.1 times per day on average for 2.8 ± 4.6 hours day. Based on these data it was found that subjects spent significantly more time in a tilted versus an upright position (p