At the Delft University of Technology in Delft, Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, a five year development project has been completed to design an engine driven vehicle for handicapped people. The project was undertaken together with a manufacturer of such vehicles. At the start of the project, the goal was set to design a vehicle from the ground up for handicapped people. The work started with literature studies, comparative studies on similar vehicles and ergonomic research. The design of the vehicle evolved in the process, during which test models were built to test interior dimensions, accessibility and the positions of displays and controls. Design studies were carried out to model the exterior and after a series of computer simulation studies, a chassis was built to test and evaluate suspension systems. After this, two prototypes were built and tested sequentially. They proved to be successful.
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