Pump to ride

 
Published: Monday 15 February 1999

Students at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, USA, have devised a more efficient trike, a human-powered vehicle somewhat like a bicycle but with three or four wheels, for disabled people who cannot use their legs to get around. it has a novel up-and-down pump drive mechanism that people work with their arms. This provides more power than other cycles for the disabled, which usually use band cranks imitating bike pedals, or a rowing motion. The trike's up-and- down handlebars also contain the controls for brakes and shifting gears, as well as a steering. The students have a patent pending on the new drive mechanism.

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