In a late 2024 Mobility Management podcast, John Domanick, vice president of sales and marketing for Merit’s Health Products, discussed how power wheelchairs with various drive configurations move differently through space — not a concept easily explained using just words.
“I finally had a chance to find that scene from the Robots movie I mentioned during our podcast,” John told me in a recent email, “specifically about the potential ‘caboose’ effect of front-wheel-drive models given the drive wheels’ forward placement and having to contend with and be mindful of the rest of the chair behind you, i.e., the caboose effect.
“I strive to paint pictures to facilitate better understanding, and this scene was one of those instances.”
The movie features the voice talents of Jennifer Coolidge (as the delightful Aunt Fanny), Robin Williams, Ewan McGregor and Amanda Bynes. Exaggerated? Of course — this is animated sci-fi comedy, not a power wheelchair test drive in clinic. But Aunt Fanny does demonstrate the general point of having drive wheels up front.
Kiki began her independent mobility journey by learning cause and effect via switch-style toys as a youngster, and her first mobility system was a stroller-style manual device. From there, she progressed to operating a power wheelchair via a joystick that she moves with her head and neck.
This has enabled Kiki to be independently mobile, and she spends her days hanging out with pals, watching TV, enjoying dance parties, and navigating uneven terrain, since Kiki lives on a farm.
Also: Kiki is a sheep. She was born with Cache Valley virus, which causes central nervous system and musculoskeletal defects but, thanks to assistive technology, hasn’t slowed Kiki down.
