3D printed wheelchair tailor made for the perfect fit

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London-based design company debuts a 3D-printed consumer wheelchair that uses a person's biometric information for a made-to-measure fit.

SHOWS: UNIDENTIFIED LOCATION (FILE) (HANDOUT - MUST COURTESY LAYER)

1. PROMO VIDEO FOR 3D PRINTED WHEELCHAIR

LONDON, ENGLAND UK (MAY 24, 2016) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL)

2. 3D PRINTED WHEELCHAIR DESIGNER BENJAMIN HUBERT TELLING ASSOCIATE ABOUT THE CHAIR

3. CLOSE OF HUBERT

4. CLOSE OF 3D PRINTED SEAT OF WHEELCHAIR

5. (SOUNDBITE) (English) BENJAMIN HUBERT, INDUSTRIAL DESIGNER, SAYING:

"Currently wheelchairs are obviously heavily stigmatised; they're very mechanical, they're seen as medical devices. And you speak to any wheelchair user and some of the things that come out that are really powerful and move you are; this is an extension of their body. It isn't just a medical tool. It is a necessity, but it's so heavily integrated in their lives that we really think it needs to express that and the physicality of it really needs to be that sinuous, flowing sense of movement that's really joined up to the way the body looks and feels."

6. MORE OF HUBERT TALKING ABOUT WHEELCHAIR AND POINTING OUT DETAILS

UNIDENTIFIED LOCATION (FILE) (HANDOUT - MUST COURTESY LAYER)

7. VARIOUS OF SEAT OF WHEELCHAIR EMERGING FROM THE 3D PRINTER

LONDON, ENGLAND UK (MAY 24, 2016) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL)

8. (SOUNDBITE) (English) BENJAMIN HUBERT, INDUSTRIAL DESIGNER, SAYING:

"You can create super-complex forms and constructions that give you a lot of benefits. So we're layering different materials together to get integrated dampening suspension in the seat, which is both lighter and more cost effective than putting big suspension systems in the framework. So for us it was about utilising the technology and getting as much bang for our buck as we could from that sort of approach."

9. CLOSE OF 3D PRINTED SEAT SECTION

10. WIDE OF WHEELCHAIR

11. CLOSE OF 'GO' LOGO ON WHEEL SPOKE

12. WIDE OF HUBERT TALKING TO JOURNALIST

13. CLOSE OF POSTER BOARD READING: 'GO - MADE TO MEASURE. 3D PRINTED. JUST FOR YOU.'

14. (SOUNDBITE) (English) BENJAMIN HUBERT, INDUSTRIAL DESIGNER, SAYING:

"The whole process of fitting a wheelchair to somebody is quite arcane. So it's an industry that's a bit like the bike industry; you have small set-ups, cutting and welding, and making frames and seats that are approximately the right size for people. And you even get small, medium and large - and that's kind of ridiculous when you think about trying to fit such a diverse range of body shapes and issues as well."

UNIDENTIFIED LOCATION (FILE) (HANDOUT - MUST COURTESY LAYER)

15. STILL IMAGE SHOWING 3D PRINTED WHEELCHAIR ALONGSIDE TRADITIONAL WHEELCHAIR

16. 2 X STILL IMAGES OF WOMAN IN 3D PRINTED WHEELCHAIR

LONDON, ENGLAND UK (MAY 24, 2016) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL)

17. (SOUNDBITE) (English) BENJAMIN HUBERT, INDUSTRIAL DESIGNER, SAYING:

"It's horrendous really; the type of sores, type of discomfort, repetitive strain - all of these kind of things. So if you can make like a glove, made-to-measure, fitting perfectly on somebody's body - like a second skin - it removes the issues of sitting in this quite mechanical, heavily stigmatised object. And the upside is you create a more pleasurable experience. Ride comfort goes up, injury goes down and you have something that's much more connected to the body; essentially the wheelchair is an extension of the human body, and that's how it needs to be thought about."

18. MORE OF 3D PRINTED WHEELCHAIR

19. VARIOUS OF CUSTOM-MADE GLOVE

20. VARIOUS OF WHEEL RIM

21. WIDE OF HUBERT WITH WHEELCHAIR

STORY: The working prototype of a 3D printed consumer wheelchair has been unveiled in London by industrial designer Benjamin Hubert.

The chair has two 3D-printed elements - the seat and the foot bay - which are tailor-made to the user's body shape. By mapping each user's biometric information, every chair is customised to the individual's requirements.

Called GO, the wheelchair accurately fits the individual's body shape, weight and disability. This reduces the risk of injury but increases flexibility and support.

"Currently wheelchairs are obviously heavily stigmatised; they're very mechanical, they're seen as medical devices. And you speak to any wheelchair user and some of the things that come out that are really powerful and move you are; this is an extension of their body. It isn't just a medical tool," Hubert told Reuters.

The 3D-printed wheelchair is the first project under the new research division of Hubert's industrial design company Layer, which worked in collaboration with 3D-printing specialists Materialise. It was developed over two years and with the input of dozens of wheelchair users and medical professionals.

The wheelchair is customised to the user's specifications; including backrest height and angle, and seat length, angle and width. The curvature of the seat is also bespoke, meaning the

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