A Borg assimilated wheelchair?
You've never seen this before Update August 20, 2023 Nobody makes what everybody wants People ride horses, we could ride along with the right chair I'm building an EXTREME rehab power wheelchair. Bookmark this page and subscribe to the Ghost YouTube Channel. Time to build it, errr, uhm... assimilate it... Crazy Chairs?

Coyote
The Rig
Zoom
Hopper
Swincar
Quadrix Each one cool in it's own way.
Can't use any of them. Expand All Blog Entries 5-1-23 - Introduction This page is about building a rehab power wheelchair that does the impossible. This design sacrifices some maneuverability in exchange for extreme performance. It won't work in close spaces, but it must get groceries, home store, Target, movies, etc... and cruise the streets, bike trails, desert trails, tow a trailer, and other junk that a standard power chair can't do... I don't have any CAD software so it's done in Photoshop. Much of the detail is in my head. There's going to be a massive amount of detail posted as it happens. Much of it might seem silly, but this is what it takes to complete the project. You can download the drawing on a page that also compares chairs (or click the image above). Design Goals: - 30 mph - 50 miles per charge - VERY smooth ride - Rehab seating, lift, tilt, recline - Squeeze through a 30" door - 6" ground clearance - Extreme off-road ability - Haul groceries and stuff - U-turn in the grocery aisle Ahhh... the last one is hard. After considering a hundred options, 4 wheel drive was abandoned in favor of three wheels and two wheel drive (delta trike design). The reason is simple. It's nearly impossible to make two front wheels turn 90 degrees for grocery store U-turns. It's possible, but too complex for me to build and too weird! The complications are too extreme to be worth doing. 6-7-23 - Ordered Scissor Lift Each step in the process has been considered. For me to do any of it will require a work bench to hold the project. I can't work on the floor, or easily pick up objects on the floor. This project needs a scissor-lift cart to use as a construction bench. Later, the cart will be great for repairs and cleaning the chair. $291.72 - Auction eBay Search At Northern Tool $291.72 - Total Spent 6-9-23 - Lift Delivered The eBay listing said 88 lbs. The box said 106 lbs. In the security cam video it looks like the FedEx driver got a hernia. I almost gave up getting it in the garage. Unboxing and assembly was also very difficult. 6-15-23 - Ordered Front End A lot of time has been spent searching for a front fork. It's hard to know how well things are made when you can only see them on a computer screen. Went to a bike shop where it's possible to see and feel the actual parts installed on a bike. Found one that seemed heavy duty enough for the job. Ordered the complete front end. Fork, wheel, tire, fender, brake, handlebar and more. $400.00 deposit - remainder due on delivery (approx. $700 total). $691.72 - Total Spent 6-23-23 - eBay M3 Ordered Bought an almost new Permobil M3 (76 miles) on eBay. It has some odd issues, but they don't really worry me. The price is right. My current back-up chair is six years old and has 5,000 miles on it. The Corpus 3G seat is in VERY good condition. IT WILL BE ASSIMILATED! The eBay M3 will be used to create a good back-up chair. The cost is part of the Borg Chair project because it's allowing me to swipe the seat from the worn out M3. $1,037.00 including shipping $1,728.72 - Total Spent 6-29-23 - eBay M3 Delivered WOW! Six days is quick shipping and they didn't damage the chair. I spent about six hours working on it. Replaced a bunch of missing nuts and bolts. Adjusted everything that's adjustable. I knew the leg rest was old garbage from another chair. It will be replaced with the leg rest assembly from my old back-up chair, but for now I got the crappy leg rest working. The chair is on the charger now. It's going for a test drive when the temp outside cools a bit. There will soon be a video about getting this chair fixed up to be my back up chair. 7-30-23 - Ordered Fork and Wheel It's been a month, but I haven't been goofing off. I've been working on two wheelchair projects. Restoring my 2015 Crazy Chair and turning the eBay M3 into a good backup chair. A bike shop was going to provide a front end for the Borg Chair. The manufacturer would only sell the parts to repair a bike they manufactured. $400 deposit was returned. $1,728.72 - Total spent - $400.00 - Deposit returned $1,328.72 - Total spent I ordered a fork and front mag wheel assembly on Amazon. This is going to cost more, but the parts are better. I had a lot of trouble with broken spokes on my old Crazy Chair. This mag wheel should be strong enough for a heavy motorcycle. $1,328.72 - Total spent + $191.83 - Front fork + $280.92 - Front wheel $1,801.47 - Total spent $1,801.47 - Total Spent 8-3-23 - First Part Delivered! The first part came for the Borg Chair. I was in the hospital recovering from yesterday's surgery. Watch the unboxing video to see what the part is. 8-3-23 - Ordered Seat Controls First step in the seat assimilation is next. Here's the parts that were ordered when I got home. $10.99 - 5 Circuit Breakers $13.99 - 3 Switches $13.29 - USB adapter $3.08 - Tax $41.35 - Total Today This stuff all goes into a die cast box. The box will get mounted to the T-slot rail on the left side of the seat. Need these parts to choose a die cast box. Have to see how the switches and circuit breakers lay out to know how big a box it will take. $1,801.47 - Previous + $41.35 - Today $1,842.82 - Total Spent $1,842.82 - Total Spent 8-5-23 - Seat Controls Delivered Gotta lay out the parts to decide what size control box to order. Watch the video to see details, but it's not that exciting. The chosen control box is a Hammond 1550GBK. Quickly chosen and then ordered from Mouser Electronics. $1,842.82 - Total Spent + $33.98 - Control box total $1,876.80 - Total Spent 8-6-23 - Seat Schematic It's so simple that there's not much reason to draw a schematic, except that it helps prevent silly misteaks. The big thing here is the fact that Corpus 3G seats don't have lift. What? You thought they did? Nope. Corpus 3G seats have two tilts. Lift is an illusion created by operating both tilt motors in a coordinated manner. Sooo anyway, the Permobil lift design/method will be cool when you have independent control over the motors. The Borg decided it's better to have fixed footrests (giant floorboard with thick padding) and let the user set leg length with the seat actuators. This is gonna be so cool to reach high stuff or to stand up (almost) or lay down... need footrests for that. I'm working on it... One big benefit of floorboards is stability, while transferring and while sitting in the chair. 8-9-23 - Switch Box The control box was delivered. I planned on mounting the box to the left seat rail and have the seat control switches sticking out the bottom. That was too difficult to operate because the box needs to be big, placing the switches too low to comfortably reach. A smaller box is needed so I ordered one. The larger box will be on the right side rail with the rest of the electrical stuff inside. The switch box is a Hammond 1550DBK. $1,876.80 - Total Spent + $22.27 - Switch Box $1,899.07 - Total Spent 8-10-23 - Seat Wiring Alright, I got the seat controls laid out. Now it's possible to get the wire for the seat. Need a bunch of wire and terminal strips, plus two more USB Outlets. What was I thinking? I only got two USB outlets. Two is never enough. Need four on the seat. Or maybe four on the floor would be better. Aww, I can do that later if I want.
$15.99 - 10FT 18/6 Cable
$28.99 - 82FT 18/2 Cable
$9.99 - Terminal Strips
$13.29 - USB Outlet
$5.49 - Tax


$1,899.07 - Total Spent
+ $73.75 - Total Today
$1,972.82 - Total Spent 8-11-23 - Grommets & Crimps Ordered grommets to protect the cables wherever they pass through metal. Ordered a potful of crimp connectors.
$8.88 - Rubber Grommets
$9.99 - Female Spade Connectors
$12.99 - Male Spade Connectors
$2.56 - Tax

$1,972.82 - Total Spent
+ $32.42 - Total Today
$2,007.24 - Total Spent 8-25-23 - Fork Delivered
$2,007.24 - Total Spent $291.72 - Scissor Lift
$1,037.00 - Permobil M3
$191.83 - Front fork
$280.92 - Front wheel
$41.35 - Seat Controls
$33.98 - Seat Control Box
$22.27 - Switch Box
$73.75 - Wire, Terminals, USB Outlet
$32.42 - Grommets and Crimp Connectors
$2,007.24 - Total Spent