2024 HAPI Japan Best Practice Winner
THE PROBLEM
In Japan’s super-aged society, there are many older people who rely on wheelchairs for mobility and need assistance from a caregiver, whether at home or in a nursing facility. But wheelchairs can often be difficult to manipulate, particularly if the person pushing the chair is an elderly spouse, for example, or if the terrain in one’s neighborhood is uneven or hilly. This can inhibit people from going out and enjoying their community. This can then limit their social participation, decreasing their opportunities for communication with the outside world, and that may in turn lead to a decline in quality of life and an increase in the level of care the person requires.
THE INNOVATION
COLORS Corporation is a private company that provides a variety of caregiving services for older adults, people with disabilities, and others. This work provides a first-hand understanding of the issues facing caregivers and allowed them to identify the difficulties that traditional wheelchairs pose. In response, they began to develop a new design for a wheelchair that would be easier for caregivers to use, regardless of the terrain, while still being light in weight and simple to operate.
The company reached out to local companies, including Seki Iron Works, a local factory in Tokyo’s Ota Ward, and Zendai Kogyo Co., and using a grant from the Ota Industrial Promotion Association, they started developing their product. They also worked with a local design firm, Kazetochitoki LLC, to improve the appearance of the chair.
The result was an innovative mechanism that fixes the front wheel casters and uses a six-wheel mechanism that centers the axle position of the large wheel directly below the center of gravity of the rider. The product is the size and weight of a traditional wheelchair, but it can go straight with just light force even on sloping grounds such as gradients, and it makes it easy to safely cross railroad tracks, go up and down steps, and operate on gravel roads—tasks that are usually very difficult with conventional wheelchairs. In addition, the operation method is intuitive and easy for older people to understand.
In 2023, they received the Excellence Award at the Welfare Equipment Contest sponsored by the Japan Rehabilitation Engineering Association. In the same year, the COLORS wheelchair became available for rent or purchase through Japan’s long-term care insurance system, making it widely accessible. The product was also introduced as a rental wheelchair at a tourist spot in Kagoshima Prefecture, Sengan-en (a designated Place of Scenic Beauty), where it helps visitors navigate uneven and gravel pathways.
The fact that this product came to fruition through the collaboration of small local enterprises, and that it was developed from the perspective of, and with input from, caregivers makes it particularly appealing. Caregivers in both institutional and home settings face tremendous physical demands, and in Japan, many caregivers are older people as well, whether spouses or others. By creating an easy-to-use wheelchair, it decreases the burden and encourages greater mobility for the user.
