A hobcart was a type of
mobility device
A mobility aid is a device designed to assist walking or otherwise improve the mobility of people with a mobility impairment.
There are various #Walking aids, walking aids which can help people with impaired ability to walk, and wheelchairs or ...
designed in the late 1960s by Dr. Steven Perry of
Albrighton,
Shropshire
Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...
,
UK.
In his practice he had two young children, both of whom had
spina bifida
Spina bifida (Latin for 'split spine'; SB) is a birth defect in which there is incomplete closing of the spine and the membranes around the spinal cord during early development in pregnancy. There are three main types: spina bifida occulta, men ...
. He considered that the
wheelchair
A wheelchair is a chair with wheels, used when walking is difficult or impossible due to illness, injury, problems related to old age, or disability. These can include spinal cord injuries ( paraplegia, hemiplegia, and quadriplegia), cerebr ...
s the children were provided with were liable to set them apart from other children of their age, so set about designing a mobility device, that would look like a
go-kart
A go-kart, also written as go-cart (often referred to as simply a kart), is a type of sports car, close wheeled car, open-wheel car or quadracycle. Go-karts come in all shapes and forms, from non-motorised models to high-performance racing ...
. The end result was the hobcart, which when it was first made, was produced at a local
borstal
A Borstal was a type of youth detention centre in the United Kingdom, several member states of the Commonwealth and the Republic of Ireland. In India, such a detention centre is known as a Borstal school.
Borstals were run by HM Prison Service ...
. The idea behind this was to try to provide the inmates of the borstal the opportunity to be involved in a project which they could see was doing some good. Hobcarts were still being made into the 1980s.
See also
*
Invacar
*
Mobility scooter
*
Toy wagon
A toy wagon has the same structure as the traditional, larger wagon, but is much smaller and has an open top. An average wagon is able to seat one child, and is generally propelled by human power through a handle at the front. Some famous brands ...
*
Invabus
References
External links
Entry in New Scientist Magazine on Hobcarts*
*
Mobility devices
Human-powered vehicles
Wheelchairs
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