Over 65 million people worldwide require a wheelchair to be part of society and live an independent life. The freedom a wheelchair can give depends on how lightweight and bespoke it is. With traditional manufacturing techniques this freedom comes at a price that most people can't afford but new techniques (e.g. 3D printing, CNC milling, laser cutting) could change that. It’s already been done for bionic limbs, now why not wheelchairs? The Mobility Makeathon hosted by BeeTwo on February 19 th & 20th at the Happylab Vienna, explored how digital manufacturing could revolutionize wheelchair design and transform lives. All our results will be published under an open license. With know-how and insipiration of Rachel Wallach and David Constantine attendees ranging from various fields of expertise and countries came together to find new ways to make wheelchair production accessible to more people and at a lower cost. Further informational talks were given by Peter Purgathofer and Stefan Kasberger.

The Mobility Makeathon hosted by BeeTwo at the Happylab Vienna on the 19th and 20th February, 2016, explored how digital manufacturing could revolutionise wheelchair design and help to transform millions of lives.

Since February HackOnWheels has continued innovating wheelchair design.