Climbing to innovation

A HK product innovator has developed an automated wheelchair that's equally smooth on staircase and sea beach. China Daily reports. 

Stair-climbing wheelchairs have been a reality for nearly nine years, but Alan Lee Siu-lun's breakthrough has moved the technology a giant leap forward, so that it can climb steps of up to 35 degrees without "stumbling". The secret is in adding a second set of continuous tracks, like miniature tank treads. Lee calls them pedrails. 

The conventional wheel had only one pedrail on each side. That can cause traction problems, frequently causing "stumbles", depending on the angulation of the stairs. As Lee explained, just as we humans need two points of contact to get up a set of stairs, so does the mechanical device. A solitary pedrail can't do that. The dual pedrail allows the device to maneuver with a kind of back and forth undulation like a snake, so that it virtually clings to stairs of different inclinations. It works on wood, marble, granite surfaces, and natural terrain. Maximum incline for stairs is 35 degrees, maximum height per step is 20 cm. Lee patented his innovation in 2011. 

The first model hits the market in November. It'll have options, a control panel that can be replaced by a tablet and a wider, replaceable pedrail for navigating outdoors, like at the beach. 

Lee's company wants to go further still and develop, and the application able to monitor the health and wellbeing of users. In an emergency, the machine would be able to notify doctors and provide assistance. 

The wheelchair can be elevated, so the user can feel on an equal plane with others and doesn't have to feel like the small person at the table at dinner time. 

The innovation has earned Alan Lee many awards from home and abroad. 

It took Lee four years to develop the wheelchair from its concept to today's market ready model. He's listened to feedback from users, went to tech expos and even adapted transformer-like applications. Users told him they wanted a chair that looked smart but kept a low profile. He borrowed from SUV design, and installed two unequal wheels on either side of the chair. Superfluous parts were eliminated so the machine was more compact. 

During trial, Lee noticed that users with special arm shape felt uncomfortable with the armrest. Thus, he customizes the armrest with 3-D printing materials according to users' arm shape. Although customization of product can be a costly exercise, Lee received funding under the Hong Kong government's Enterprise Support Scheme, which provides each entrepreneur with funding up to HK$10 million on a dollar-for-dollar matching basis. 

It took Alan Lee four years to develop the wheelchair that is smart and low profile. Photos provided to China Daily 

Make 'Made in HK' happen 

Hong Kong is not readily recognized for its product innovation. That's probably unfair. Many local innovators have taken their inventions abroad for development because resources in the city are inadequate, said Lee. He added the situation has been misinterpreted so as to have devalued the "Made in HK" label. 

Still, production costs were high. Lee decided to manufacture the wheelchairs in Shenzhen across the border. He's determined to make the "Made in HK" dream come true - with the chair gaining recognition on the global market. 

Italy is his first target market. Disabled people in Italy are entitled to reimbursement for wheelchair purchases. At HK$120,000, Lee's device will generally be affordable to Italian customers. He hopes to use brand recognition in Italy as springboard to other European markets. 

The dual pedrail allows the device to maneuver on different surfaces. 

As sales volume increases, obviously the selling price will go down, offering a competitive advantage on the Chinese mainland. "I intend to lower the price to HK$80,000 once we sell 10,000 wheelchairs in Europe. Then we will penetrate into the Chinese market," Lee said. 

Statistics released by the China Disabled Persons' Federation reveal that some 6 percent of the population of the mainland suffers from restrictive physical mobility, due to disabilities. One third of them need a wheelchair. Over 40 percent are over 65 years old and that number is rapidly growing as the aging of the mainland's population accelerates. 

Despite the difficulties of manufacturing in Hong Kong, Lee has taken the first step to make a product in Hong Kong with government support. His enterprise is in a privileged position whereby the government has granted rights for them to use factories in an industrial village as a research base. Lee intends to do customization in the local research base. 

"Every time we ask a factory on the Chinese mainland for machine production, we are required to wait a long time. We need only a couple of days to do the customization at the research base," Lee said. 

Strength of conviction 

Since the establishment of B-Free in 2012, Lee has had virtually zero net income as he spent most of his savings on product development. A conviction and determination to see the design come true, in Lee's own word "the pursuit of every inventor", has supported him throughout this journey. To achieve this goal, Lee refused a "sweet" deal that others may have already taken. 

Four years ago, an investor offered Lee HK$10 million for his patent. He'd only spent HK$200,000 on product innovation. Lee suspected the investor wasn't really interested in the plans. "He pushed me to sell the patent as soon as possible. I then learnt that he just wanted my patent so he could apply for a land development. He had no interest in produce the wheelchair at all," Lee recalled. Lee turned down the offer. He wanted to make the design real. 

Lee is not alone in pursuing his dream. His wife, Aubrey Chan, is right there. "Without her support, I'd have no way holding up, until now," Lee said. 

It's tough for Lee. There's paperwork which he hates. Fortunately his wife does most of it and other mundane details. "I have spent nearly half of my life with Alan," she said. "I knew where his ability can reach," said Chan. 

Lee has been doing design work for 27 years. Before that he drew cartoons for a living, after getting out of secondary school. "Once I drew a cover for a toy, I felt the design was boring, so I invented a new toy and drew it. Out of my expectation, the boss liked my design and put it into production," Lee recalled. That changed his career. 

Before moving to Hong Kong Science Park, Lee did all his work on a desk in his bedroom, The desk was all the office equipment the couple had. Now they have their own office in the Science Park. Although it is not very spacious, 20-square-meters is still large enough for three computer desks, a wheelchair and a four-step test stair. 

The toughest part of the journey is behind them. They are concentrating on the birth of their first "baby". "We have no children. So we put all our heart into the wheelchair innovation. We treat our product as our child," Chan said.