Patent ID: 8777251

Claim:
A wheelchair, comprising: a chassis; a seat assembly connected to the chassis; a drive system for propelling the wheelchair, the drive system including one or more drive wheels connected to the chassis, the drive wheels driven by one or more drive assemblies; a controller having one or more user inputs for controlling the drive system, the controller including a housing having a top surface and a bottom surface, the top surface having a weight bearing portion configured to support a user's weight when the user places at least a portion of his or her hand on the weight bearing portion without damaging the controller to facilitate entering or exiting the wheelchair; and wherein the wall thickness of the weight bearing portion is greater than the wall thickness of at least one other portion of the housing such that the weight bearing portion supports the user's weight when the user places at least a portion of his or her hand on the weight bearing portion without damaging the controller to facilitate entering or exiting the wheelchair.