British dad builds 'designer' wheelchair

LONDON, May 13 (UPI) -- A British father frustrated over finding the right wheelchair for his daughter has created a boldly colored, lightweight, durable "designer" wheelchair.

"A lot of companies aren't prepared to put in much production investment, but I also think there's a lack of imagination," Richard Smith told BBC News Online. He found the available products to be " too heavy, too cumbersome, not really fit for the purpose and quite stigmatizing as well."

Smith hired two graduates in industrial design and worked with them to produce the "Chunc."

"All the parts are individually designed even down to the nuts and bolts, so when you put it together you have a wheelchair that actually looks as though someone's thought about it," he said. The chair is designed to 'grow' with the user, and will require periodical adjustments as the child develops. It folds so that it can be carried in the trunk.

The cost to a private individual would be about $2,600.