Gaining Access to the Outdoors: A Wheel Camber Adjustment Mechanism for Use in Nonmotorized, All-Terrain Vehicles.

Wheelchair users are severely restricted from participation in outdoor activities due to the inability to traverse rough and sloped terrain. A novel wheel camber adjustment mechanism for hand powered, all-terrain, wheeled vehicles will be designed and evaluated. This system addresses the central technical issue in achieving high stability in such vehicles. The wheel camber adjustment system allows continuous adjustment of vehicle/operator center of gravity to keep it centered over the wheelbase. Such a design reduces the need for a wide wheel base or a low center of gravity to achieve stability. The mechanism will be integrated in to a hand-powered vehicle and tested for stability under a wide variety of terrain conditions. This mechanism will allow construction of a highly stable, hand-powered vehicle that has the narrow wheelbase and high clearance needed to traverse most trails, rocky shores, and forests.