The Safer Seat: Enhance Community Mobility Through Safer Vehicle Transfers

Research Objectives: To refine the initial prototype of the Safer Seat in preparation for initial safety and usability testing.

Design: Design and development study.

Setting: Clinical prototyping lab

Participants: Not applicable, development study.

Interventions: Numerous people face challenges in vehicle transfers due to impaired mobility, balance, and strength. A low-burden, vehicle transfer aid that facilitates safe and efficient transfers into and out of vehicles is needed to support equitable community mobility and to reduce injuries. The Safer Seat, a vehicle seat overlay, utilizes a simple design to facilitate easier execution of safer transfer techniques into and out of a vehicle through turn and tilt functions. The Safer Seat has been purposefully designed to improve upon existing transfer disks to ensure it is uniquely suited for older adults with physical and cognitive impairments. The Safer Seat prototype iterative development spans refinement of the seat lift mechanism, dynamic turn lock, and device anchor.

A vehicle seat device, comprising: a base, and a seat connected to the base, the seat comprising a dynamic section that is rotatable relative to the base, at least a portion of the dynamic section being tiltable relative to the base from an untilted to a tilted position.

The base is where the lifting mechanism will occur, and it is also where the electric components will be housed. The electromechanical lifting mechanism will lift the seat at 25° to 30°.

The seat is where the swivel mechanism occurs. The seat of the vehicle seat device comprises a static section and the dynamic section (center seat), wherein the static section is not movable relative to the base. The seat moves 90° from windshield facing position to side door facing position and vice versa.

Main Outcome Measures: The refined design is being evaluated through Technology Acceptance Model usability assessments to include qualitative interview feedback and objective Perceived Usability, Usefulness, and Attitudes Toward Use surveys (Davis, 1985)

Results: The project is ongoing, results are intended to reflect that the Safer Seat is both usable and easy to use. Feedback to the contrary will be used to guide continued design refinement.

Conclusions: The Safer Seat is anticipated to yield clinical impact via enhanced safety during vehicle transfers and by addressing potential barriers to community mobility and participation. The design of the Safer Seat is intended to be appropriate for use by individuals with both typical and impaired cognition, as it will require no set-up and will function using only two steps – sit and turn.

Author(s) Disclosures: Project funded through the University of Pittsburgh School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Innovation Challenge.