Italdesign WheeM-i

Mobile operator Etisalat from the UAE and Italian design studio Italdesign have developed the first ride sharing service for wheelchair users. The development, called WheeM-i (from ‘Wheelchairs Mobility Interface’), is an electric platform that makes traveling around cities easier for people with lightweight manual wheelchairs.

Built-in electric motors will allow you to move without the use of muscle strength, and assistance systems will help people with disabilities avoid collisions with stationary or moving objects. Italdesign noted that WheeM-i is able to overcome the city’s traditional road obstacles, which are difficult for ordinary wheelchairs.

To use WheeM-i, you need to download a smartphone application to reserve a platform. At the end of the trip, users will return it to the closest hub to their destination. In addition, the possibility of interaction with other users of the service and public transport is provided.

“As a company providing development services to the worldwide mobility industry, we strongly believe that future mobility must have a positive impact on everyone’s life. WheeM-i is part of this vision which we really hope to bring to reality,” said Italdesign CEO Jörg Astalosch.