| People with disabilities may encounter difficulties with | | | | This may easily happen if the wheelchair patient is |
| many activities of daily life. Depending on the level of | | | | being positioned to be wheeled up the ramp of the |
| disability, this can occur during a trip to a | | | | scale. |
| supermarket, where it may be difficult to remove | | | | This type of side impact can easily damage a load cell |
| items from a shelf while seated in a wheelchair. | | | | if it is not properly designed for this. Most industrial |
| Packages may be difficult to open. Movement within | | | | scale load cells are fabricated from either aluminum or |
| a residence, or public travel, may require specialty | | | | nickel plated steel. Unfortunately, both of these |
| equipment, disability access, or personal aid. | | | | materials do not withstand shock loads very well. |
| Medical equipment may have to be specially designed | | | | They may be easily deformed by this type of load. |
| for those with disabilities. Beds may need special | | | | Some electronic scales, including those manufactured |
| accessories. Showers and bathtubs should have | | | | by Arlyn Scales, are built with load cells that are |
| additional safety rails and other methods for easy | | | | machined from stainless steel. The stainless steel alloy |
| access. Of course, the wheelchair is a specially | | | | employed for this purpose has a much higher |
| designed device to offer better mobility for those | | | | modulus of elasticity, which provides significantly |
| who cannot walk. Even a wheelchair may come in a | | | | better protection from side loads. After the stock |
| wide variety of different formats for specific levels | | | | material is machined into a load cell, it receives a |
| of disability. Motorized units provide additional | | | | further heat treating process to provide even further |
| independence. Some chairs are designed for especially | | | | protection. |
| large people. | | | | To properly handle a full range of wheelchair patients, |
| There are often situations where medical care | | | | the wheelchair scale should have a capacity of 1000 |
| requires the weight of a patient to be known. There | | | | lb. Load cells of this capacity must be fairly tall, which |
| may be a need to ensure that the patient does not | | | | will require the scale profile to be higher than desired. |
| have excess fluid retention. It may be necessary to | | | | Stainless steel load cells may have a lower profile. For |
| determine if an adequate nutritional level is being met. | | | | an even lower profile, scales provided by Arlyn Scales |
| Weight may be an important factor in selecting the | | | | have machined pockets in the scale platform to |
| specific medications, or the dosage levels that are | | | | accept the load cells. This results in an overall |
| required. | | | | platform height of only 1 7/8”, and does not |
| Wheelchair scales are specially designed electronic | | | | require the higher side rails that are found in many |
| scales that are meant to provide this type of | | | | other wheelchair scales. |
| information. These digital scales must provide | | | | Further advantages of these electronic scales include |
| accurate weight, and must be able to display this | | | | a large, graphics display panel. The digits are 1” |
| weight in an easy to read format. Most importantly, | | | | high in a wide graphics font, and may easily be read |
| the wheelchair scale must provide a large, stable | | | | from across a room. A modern USB (Universal Serial |
| weighing platform with easy access for the | | | | Bus) data port allows the scale to be plugged into a |
| wheelchair. In some medical center situations, it may | | | | computer. Weight data may be automatically inserted |
| also be desirable to record the patient weight, and to | | | | in a data base file. Or it may be directly formatted |
| send this data into a central database. These | | | | into an Excel spreadsheet. As an alternative, a USB |
| weighing scales must be very rugged and reliable. | | | | flash memory stick can store thousands of weight |
| Many of the professionally built wheelchair scales are | | | | results from the scale. Afterwards, the USB stick |
| based on designs used for industrial scales. Typically, | | | | may be brought to any computer for the results to |
| they may be a platform scale that has been modified | | | | be downloaded. Arlyn goal is to provide clients with |
| for this specific use. Generally the platform must be | | | | superiority in equipment and service unrivaled in the |
| quite large, and have a very low profile. These | | | | scale industry. For almost 30 years Arlyn has |
| electronic scales utilize load cells in each corner of the | | | | manufactured top of the line industrial weighing |
| scale platform to convert weight into electronic | | | | equipment with an accent on quality, accuracy, |
| format. The load cells must be particularly capable of | | | | advanced technology and durability. From Platform |
| withstanding impacts that may occur if the | | | | Scales to Wheelchair Scales and everything in |
| wheelchair is pushed against the side of the scale. | | | | between, Arlyn Scales has it all. |