Ramps
Amit Pitaru, John Schimmel, Wlodek Koss
Ramps: A Physical Interface to Technology for Wheelchair Users

Ramps is a wheelchair to computer interface that uses existing chair mobility skills with interactive software that encourages creativity and play. The physical product of Ramps is a pair of rollers on top of slight ramps, the direction and speed of each wheel on a manual chair can be detected and transmitted to the computer. The first application made for Ramps was a Wheelchair DJ system that let the user be the MC and listen, sample and share music. The left wheel fades between tracks while the right wheel scratches the current track. Another applications include simple video games were that created to promote wheelchair skills and give the experience to those who do not use them. The design was not inspired by rehabilitation but for promoting the lifestyle of wheelchairs users, while rehabilitation is still a valid application, self expression and creativity is the driving force of Ramps.