Garret Brown, the inventor of the Steadicam, knows a thing or two about moving around smoothly. And, after forever altering the film industry, he is about to do the same for people with certain impairments who rely on mobility aids to get around. Brown created the 'Zeen,' a comfortable chair that can be used as both a walker and a wheelchair.
Inspiration
Brown told CBS that he got the idea while visiting his then-97-year-old father in a nursing home. "I was watching his buddies. And something significant seemed to be missing between the walkers and the wheelchairs. When you are confined to a wheelchair, your feet are not particularly on the ground. You're not standing straight. Being upright is beneficial to your cardiovascular system, bone density, limbic system, and digestive system. And it's especially beneficial to your mental health. Being up among your fellow humans is one of the things we hear people love about this machine the most."
Brown went to work. It took him and his team of engineers about ten years to create the chair as it is now.
Support
Garret Brown began marketing the Zeen at conventions and conferences after finding the right design, hoping to reach people with limited mobility. And he's already produced a hundred Zeens. "Not being able to do a sit to stand yourself like that," one customer, Anomie Fatale, told CBS, "it gives you back something that you lost that you miss every day."
Brown demonstrates how people using the Zeen can sit and stand while in the chair in a CBS video. This will provide people with limited mobility with an entirely new mode of transportation. "The moment we give you this, A. degree of freedom, and B. autonomy," Brown said. And that is an important word in this context. You're on your own when you're in it and safe."
Brown has even contacted Pope Francis in order to obtain a Zeen that is currently in the pope's residence. What is Brown's ultimate goal? "What we do for a good life is invent," Brown told CBS. "Imagining what you want, that is to say, what is missing, and what you need to do to get there" He hopes that his new invention will benefit as many people as possible, and he wants everyone to know that the Zeen is here to help.