Portable Hand-Controls Systems.
There are in the market several types of portable hand-controls.
These systems may be installed in minutes in almost any
automatic car, leaving no marks (holes) on the dashboard or car
body. Handicapped drivers with strong hands and fingers may operate them with no
problem. With some of them cruise control is an advantage: pressing a pedal
with 1 finger for hours may be hard for some drivers.
The legal status
of portable systems in various countries is not clear. Therefore one should
not attempt to install such a system without explicit approval of the
rental company. In case of an accident, insurance may be void if such an
offense is done, no matter who is blamed for the accident! On the other
hand, we must press the makers of the systems to
state clearly the legal status of their systems. It is their interest also
to press for recognition by both government offices and car-rental
companies.
In that subject I got the following reply from
Europe by Car:
Date: Fri, 9 Apr 1999 11:11:27 -0400
Subject: RE: Disabled drivers
''We do not provide hand control systems, but you should be able to
install your own ony a rental or lease car, provided no permanent damage
is done in the installation.''
Exactly one year after this message I tried to exercise their service,
but their bottom line was:
''All rental car companies reserve the right to refuse delivery to any
client they deem unable to properly drive their vehicles.
We cannot guarantee that our suppliers in Europe will agree to
deliver a car to you.
If you need a guarantee before you arrive to take delivery that a
rental car company is going to deliver you the vehicle, we suggest you
attempt to place the order with another company.''
General remarks
When you try to rent a specific car, the rental company says it will
be from the required ''class'' or upper (an upgrade). For most drivers
an upgrade is a welcomed event but with portable systems it may lead
to troubles. Therefore insist on getting an updated list of cars
on which it is impossible / unsafe to install your portable system.
''Updated list'' because international car-rental companies offer
only new cars. With finger-operated systems (like LYNX, Peddle-Master)
ask also about the hardness of the gas pedal returning spring.
This is a system I have good experience with. I have driven already
some 15000 km with it in various countries. It is made in the UK
and used by some car-rental companies there. The driver must
have good balance on the car seat because the system
floats (attached to the pedals only). With some
cars strong fingers are required also.
During installation, extra care should be taken with rubber-coated
pedals. If this coating is not removable reversibly, you may consider
extra fastening arrangements.
Lynx helps its customers finding rental cars in various countries.
In some locations the system is available for rent through institutions
for disabled people.
The system is mentioned in the
BBC transprot tips for disabled travellers. They say (March 2004):
The Lynx Hand Control ... is accepted by most major hire companies.
In 1998 a
US-patent was issued on the system (see figure and description there).
An American portable hand-controls system similar to the
British Lynx. It claims
to have faster mechanical attachments to the car pedals.
Judson
says (in earlier version of their site) that
Only 20 to 30 percent of the world's airports offer handicap
vehicles for rent. The lightweight and portable Peddle Master may be
carried in a suit case, so the physically challenged traveler may also
have the option of renting any car that fits his or her needs.
My experience is that above percentage is optimistic outside USA.
Also not all rental companies will agree to installation of portable
system. See also their
patent.
An American portable hand-controls system similar to the
British Lynx and the
American Peddle-Master.
It claims to have fast mechanical attachments to the car pedals:
The PHC III is designed to be installed from a wheelchair, and without tools.
With a little practice, most people can install these hand controls in under three minutes.
The system is distributed in Europe by
Oasis.
The most interesting system was made by Craig Lenz,
Contact Technologies from Weyburn, Canada. Their CT901 system was very similar to
the standard permanent systems and the
package
of the system was very
clever. I drove a rented car fitted with CT901 in USA in 1993. It was OK
after I got used to the loose feeling (built-in freedom of the attachment
to the steering column).
Contact Technologies does not exist any more, but the production
line of the CT901 was purchased by
Automobility.
Details may be seen in the site of
Scott's Adaptive Devices. By the way, Scott is listed as one of the
inventors of the CT901, the other inventor is Craig Lenz. It is now
defined as ''quick-attach-permanent'' and there is a question about it's
portability. They say it is used in thousands of car-rental locations. They
state also:
For liability reasons we do not sell
our system as a portable, there aren't any portables that will meet
standards...
That is an interesting point to verify with the other makers.
An American firm claiming long experience with hand-controls. They say
they have also portable systems, but disclose no details there. I asked
for details and will update the site if any positive info will arrive.
No answer from them for several months.
Their system is displayed and sold by
Mobility Med. They say:
To be used on a temporary basis only. For Example: when renting a car for
temporary transportation. Be sure to rent a car with Automatic Transmission,
power brakes and steering... STRONG ARMS & HANDS REQUIRED.
Patents.
Here are results of a quick partial search on portable systems in the
US patents database. Most
patent documents contain reference to many other similar patents.
Some of them did not reach the markets.
CT901 (see above).
Contact Technologies (see above).
Peddle-Master (see above).
Lynx (see above).
Patent 5542312 by B.T. Peters (filed 1994). Similar to Lynx and Peddle-Master.
Patent 4424723 by Gockel, D.A. (filed 1981). Similar to Lynx.
The patents database is
Delphion.com (previously hosted by IBM).
It contains both text and figures, but some pages need registration.
Alternative databases are
Sunsite (STO) and
US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
Revised: 3/2004.
Address: 
.