Mobility walkers, or wheel walkers, can be invaluable to the elderly or anyone who is unsteady on their feet and they can also double up as carrying trolleys for small amounts of shopping.
Most mobility walkers have four wheels, with the two front wheels being directional, i.e. steer-able by the pusher. The wheels should be rubber and are often in pairs, i.e 8 wheels ( 4 pairs) for a 4 wheeler.
The walker should have a braking system (press down spring loaded) that will usually be operated by a downward pressure on the handles. This not only makes the brake system easy to operate, but it acts as a failsafe (if the person using it falls or slips), by fixing the walker as a barrier in front of them. It also prevents accidental run-away and holds the walker in position if it is used as a seat.
A mobility walker should have height adjustable handles, which usually point towards the person holding them, and their construction is usually tubular. This maximises design strength, but with the lowest “weight to size” ratio possible. This makes these mobility walkers easy to push and manoeuvre, even for those with limited strength. (It is a downward pressure on the handles that activates the brake action.)
Other important features to look out for on these mobility walkers are seats, which again should be adjustable and which, on some models, may have backrests.
Many mobility walkers will fold down to minimise storage space and special areas/containers/fittings etc allow for the holding of walking sticks or elbow crutches and of course a shopping bag. This is normally located under the seat.
For an example of a mobility walker you can go to this page: http://www.ableliving.com/productdetails.cfm?ProductID=0085uni.
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