A New Zealand inventor has built a hi-tech "wheelchair" for his best mate that fits onto a standard Segway Personal Transporter (PT) in minutes. Working with his disabled friend - who is paralysed from the waist down - the pair came up with a design that delivers incredible performance and remarkable capability - both indoors and off-road. Read on down for more details, and a hands-on first review of their latest prototype. Prior to this new invention there were already several seat options available to Segway PT owners. SegSeat was the first company to develop optional seating for the Segway PT in 2005, followed by LeanSeat in 2007 and SegSaddle in 2009. Typically, these are products that are chosen by people who have a mobility impairment where they are unable to stand for extended periods. Should they tire of riding along in the normal standing position they can change to riding in a seated position for a while. They can also use the seat when at rest. In New Zealand, the SegSaddle has proved particularly popular, as it provides gas-strut suspension tuned to the rider's weight for comfort, and an elegant sliding and height-adjust mechanism. Some users of these seat products are unable to stand up at all. More recently, several manufactures have developed optional wheelchair-style seating attachments for the Segway PT. Two commercial examples are the Ally Chair (USA) and the Ginnymobility (Italy). These products are suitable for individuals who would normally use a power chair (electric wheelchair) and have either limited or no ability at all to stand. For individuals who do not have legs, the SegSolutions GlidR Seat is also an option. The inspiration behind these "Segway wheelchairs" was the iBot - the electric wheelchair that can ride on four wheels or balance up on two wheels (just like a Segway PT). The iBot - developed under the code name Fred - was developed by Dean Kamen in parallel to the secret project -code named Ginger - that was later revealed to be the Segway PT. Another company experimenting with "wheelchairs that are a-bit-like-a-Segway" include Toyota with the i-Real concept that can be seen here. The new Kiwi Segway "wheelchair" has been refined by its inventors through several generations over the past year, and it was demonstrated at a series of shows for disability equipment around the country in early 2012. It seems likely that it will become a commercial product in the near future. The wheelchair attachment is compatible with both i2 and x2 models, and in x2 configuration has incredible off-road capabilities. It would also be easy to modify it for use with first generation PT models. Philip Bendall from Segway New Zealand took a prototype for a test ride in February 2012, and was amazed at its incredible off-road capabilities when fitted to a Segway x2 Turf model, saying: "In my experience, this device is capable of going more places than any of the off-road power chairs that I've seen or tried. Mud, clay and sand were easy to transverse, and it is almost impossible to 'belly' it and get stuck. It can climb very steep hills - in the same way the Segway PT can climb Baldwin Street in Dunedin - so just imagine what it can do in the great outdoors. When traveling along the footpath or on the grass verge it is incredibly smooth - and very comfortable thanks to the large wheels found on both i2 or x2 configurations. There is no way any traditional 4 or 6 wheeled power chair can compare to this. I was very impressed. "Plus, it has the small footprint, the light weight, the agility and the speed of a normal Segway PT. In fact, this power chair configuration was so much better than traditional solutions that I am certain this approach is where the future lays. It brings real benefits to the lives of the disabled, especially compared with the old-fashioned 20th century technologies that are not only big, heavy and inconvenient, but place real limits their freedom." The latest prototype includes a lever that deactivates the dynamic stability of the PT's Balance Mode, and then lowers two castor-wheeled "feet" to create static stability. This enables a disabled person to easily transfer on or off the Segway PT (e.g. from a wheelchair, car seat, or couch). In Balance Mode, the seated rider simply leans their upper body forward or back at little to move. Because the centre of gravity is low, only a small amount of body movement is required. A lever between the rider's legs is used to turn left and right with a gentle hand movement. Alternatively, another turning mode can be activated, enabling turning simply by leaning left or right in the chair. This mode is reported to be particularly appealing and useful to some users - especially those who are fully disabled from the waist down. One of the first people to try the new Segway Wheelchair was Hayden Allen, who agreed this was "an awesome mobility device". Unable to stand or walk as a consequence of a serious motorcycle accident, Hayden is best known from his association with Rex Bionics - another great Kiwi invention that is transforming lives. The Rex Bionics exoskeleton is the world's first hands-free, self-supporting, independently controlled robotic walking device that enables a person with a mobility impairment to stand up and walk. It has been developed by Richard Little and his team in Auckland over the past five years, and is probably the world-leader in its field. Read about Philip Bendall's first experience walking in the Rex Bionics exoskeleton.