IF sufficient funding can be raised, physically challenged individuals who rely on wheelchairs to get about, will have the opportunity to upgrade to an all-terrain wheelchair, the MaxTrac.

Designed by Cairns inventor Darren Green, the MaxTrac is a ‘tracked chair’ – an innovative and revolutionary tracked, all-terrain, electric powered chair designed to be driven over any surface: from delicate bathroom tiles; lounge room carpets or varnished timber floors; bitumen or dirt roadways; concrete steps and other uneven surfaces, to soft beach sand, pebbles, gravel, grass and mud.

MaxTrac's highly advanced and innovative ‘go anywhere’ rubberised track system is designed to overcome many of those insurmountable obstacles faced by the more traditional electric wheelchair.

But the brains behind the innovation have a few of their own obstacles: they need to raise $40,000 to build a second chair – they have a prototype – and obtain certification.

“This is our challenge and we want to raise the money as quickly as we can as we do not want our idea to be copied,” said Michael Kidd, the project’s business development director.

“This is an extremely exciting and unique invention. This chair can go anywhere. If you live in Port Douglas and you want to go on to the beach, you will have no problems with the MaxTrac,” he said.

Green has been developing the MaxTrac wheel chair for the past eight years.

“The chair has been designed so that people with mobility issues will no longer be excluded because of the limited access that common wheelchairs provide.

“Over the last eight years my friend Michael (Kidd) and I have invested many thousands of dollars, thousands of hours and over 30 prototypes to produce a chair that is safe, reliable and, when in production, affordable.

“Our next goal is to get the MaxTrac certified to Australian standard. Unfortunately, Mike and I can no longer support the project ourselves as we have exhausted our funds. We are hoping to raise the $40,000 needed to both construct a chair and pay for the testing itself,” said Green.

Green said there are many people who want a MaxTrac chair, many of whom are disabled friends, and is hoping to raise the money as soon as possible. The chairs are expected to retail around $15,000.

If you are interested in donating to this cause, you can go to: www.gofundme.com 

For more information about the MaxTrac: http://www.maxtrac.com.au