A couple of months ago, the US-based company Adaptive Cycle, which has been developing a set of bikes designed for people with disabilities, won the prestigious “Best Product Design” award at the Indian Design Awards.
Adaptive’s Tricycle Chair was the winner of the category for its unique folding mechanism, a feature that is currently being explored in several other countries.
But its unique fold mechanism has also drawn the ire of some people who feel that it is unfair to people with intellectual disabilities, according to the company’s website.
The Tricycle chair is the first tricycle to use a folding mechanism that can fold to fit a specific position and then adjust the seat to suit.
The folding mechanism folds up to six times and is made from flexible foam and polyurethane material, which is supposed to be a better fit for people who have intellectual disabilities.
“Adaptive Tricycles have a great range of products that can accommodate the needs of people with different cognitive abilities, but we believe that their most important thing is that they are designed for everyday use,” Adaptive told Al Jazeera.
“People who have mental health challenges, who have limited mobility and are unable to bend their body into a more normal way to move can use the Tricycle.”
Adaptive claims that the Tricyclists fold into the body with ease, and that it has even been adopted by some of the country’s leading doctors.
In a video uploaded to the website, Dr Rajesh Yadav, the president of the India Mental Health Association, said that the folding mechanism made it easier for people to use the tricycle because it makes it easier to control the bike.
“The most common way for people like us who are physically handicapped to get around is to sit in a chair, which does not fold for us,” Yadav said.
“The folding mechanism is a much more comfortable way of getting around.”
In the video, Yadav also claimed that the chair is a great way to “take care of” a person who is unable to walk.
“For someone like us, who cannot use a chair because of their disability, it is very important to take care of them by taking care of the chair,” Yadawat said.
However, the video did not specify whether Yadav was referring to a chair in which a person with mental disabilities could sit, or a chair where a person without a disability could sit.
In the video he also did not say how much weight the chair was carrying.
“It’s too early to say if that is the right way to use this invention, but if you take care to use it appropriately and you fold it up for people, then it can be a great thing,” Yadaws said.
“We’re all a little bit different, but I think it is a good way to give a little help to a person in need, and also to give them a little direction to get to work, to go to school, to find something to do.”
A woman in the video said that she used to ride the Tricys for about two years and then moved on to the Adaptives, which she said made her happy.
“When I first bought the Trics, I felt like I had a different kind of relationship with them.
I felt that they were more like a big, big, sturdy thing, and they made me feel that I was part of the family, like they were really important people, and it was really good for me,” the woman said.
But the woman also added that it would not be fair to the people with mental health issues to have to buy a specialised tricycle that folds into their bodies.
“We have to keep them in our own homes and make them a special one, so that they can go wherever they want,” she said.
Yadav also said that Adaptive had already introduced its new Tricycling Chair into a few cities.
“If you’re visiting a city, then we’re already working on making a special Tricycy for you,” Yadayav said in an interview with The Indian Express.
The company has also launched an app that will help people in India understand the Tricity’s folding mechanism and adjust it to suit their needs.
The app is expected to be launched later this year.
Adaptives Tricycle Chair will be available for sale in India, though not for the time being, according an Adaptive spokesperson.
Adaptedic has already sold over 4,000 Tricycluses in India.