The Avanchair project was created by Andrea Depalo, a wheelchair user, to allow people with disabilities safe and independent mobility. The project is developing a wheelchair with an embedded transfer system to bridge gaps between the wheelchair and surfaces, making transfers safer and reducing stress. The system will also integrate IoT and health monitoring. The company is based in Italy and has a prototype but no current sales. The founders are Depalo, Emilio Rigolio, Giovanni Nanini, and Roberta Rigolio, who have experience in disability rights, automation engineering, and healthcare.

1. Toyota Startup Awards
Mobility for All
Project description
5. Project’s name
Avanchair
6. In which country is the company registered?
Italy
7. In which city is the company based?
Caronno Pertusella
8. Describe your value proposition in a tweet
Allow to people with disabilities a sustainable mobility, offering a safe and
independent transferring, IoT and health monitoring and bridging the gap between
wheelchairs and e-mobility
9. Project URL
www.avanchair.com
10. Project longer description
Avanchair project was born from our funder and wheelchair user Andrea Depalo and his
believes that the inclusion of wheelchair users starts from allowing them a safely and
independent exit from their home and it goes to the independence of moving from and to
the wheelchair without caregivers assistance.The meeting between the need and the
solving capability of Emilio Rigolio, gave rise to the first feasibility study for overcoming
vertical and horizontal gaps between the wheelchair and the surface to be reached. A
subsequent electrical and connection improvement, allowed wheelchair users to “go
green” everywhere thanks to rechargeable batteries as well as both the users and their
caregivers to benefit of the IoT technology to monitor the vehicle as well as the user
health.
11 Why is your project innovative?
One of the most restricting functional limitations that wheelchair users face during their
everyday routine is transferring from and to the wheelchair and thus is performed 15 to 20
times per day. Examples of required transfers for wheelchair users are getting on and off
the bed, bath tub and/or shower, toilet, car seat and tables. If we consider that around 54%

2. of existing wheelchair users have difficulties or need help while transferring, it’s clear this is
a relevant issue for the users and even for their caregivers. For both users and caregivers
transferring is one of the most physically strenuous and emotionally stressful wheelchair
activities. In fact incorrect transfer skills may predispose to developing upper limb pain and
overuse related injuries in the performers but it can also induces different kind of anxiety in
both the players. For a wheelchair user transferring by himself means independence along
with everyday life activities both in and outside home and a safe transferring reduced
physical and emotional stress even in the caregiver.We focused on the development of a
wheelchair embedded system for bridging the vertical and horizontal gaps between the
wheelchair and the surfaces to be reached which is actually missing in both the electric/
powered or robotic commercial solutions. Another milestone in innovation is our will to
bridging the gap between electric wheelchairs and e-mobility, integrating Iot and
monitoring solutions, allowing the use of e-mobility charging infrastructure and the
interaction with electric vehicles for public and private transport
12 Market size and main competitors
The market is global with globally increase in the need of powered wheelchair mainly due
to the increase in age, orthopaedic and neurological diseases. If we consider EU
population, the first 8 countries for wheelchair users number count for over 11 million
potential customers, in the US the wheelchair users has been estimate in 2.7 million while
in the last 10 years Russia government has bought about 663.000 wheelchairs.
Besides wheelchairs owner and users, we can also considerGlobal wheelchair market will
grow at 3.4% CAGR by 2027 (Medgadget, global wheelchair and component market, jan
2020) Even an initial low penetration of the existing market (2-5%), will generate an
interesting cash flow, necessary to replicate the CAGR benchmark.
No competition with manual or outdoor wheelchairs was considered.
We focused only on robotic and powered wheelchair manufacturers while surfing the web
market we found no solutions in which a wheelchair-embedded transfer system is present.
13 Competitive advantages
We consider both user’s and caregiver’s health, there aren’t competitors considering a
safe independent transfer, performed by the user.
14 Project milestone
Prototype
15 Do you have pilots or sales?
No
16 Please indicate here your main clients (if you cannot disclose this, please
indicate sector and company size)
INJURED PATIENTS WITH MOVEMENT IMPAIRMENT (patients associations, clinicians
and research centers OR by web advertising/ buzz marketing ), MILITARY AND POLICE
OFFICERS (DEFENCE MINISTRY), RETIREMENT HOMES, HOSPITALS, HOSPICES,
HEALTH INSURANCE COMPANIES

3. 17 Please detail here your income statement (last year of operation)
0-€50K
18 Upload your pitch deck here
http://www.slideshare.net/AndreaDepalo1/avanchair-pitch-dech
19 Share a video showcasing your product and/or services
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Q0nH-J-Kyw&
20 How many years have this project been operational?
1-3 years
Strategic fit
21 What vertical or verticals of the challenge fits with your company?
Disruptive Mobility
22 How is your company helping to create a "Mobility for All" future?
Allowing people with disabilities a sustainable mobility, offering a safe and
independent transferring, IoT and health monitoring, bridging the gap between wheelchairs
and green e-mobility
23 How much private investment (€) has your startup raised so far?
0
24 Current main source of funds
No funds received
25 What is the equity breakdown of the founders?
>75%
26 Are you planning to raise funding in the near future?
yes

4. 27 How much (€)?
€500K-€1M
Team
28 How many founders does your company have?
2 (or more) full-time founders
29 Previous collaboration: Has the team built products together before?
Yes
30 Indicate the average years of experience in your target market of the team
members
>5 years
31 How many total team members (FTE) does your company have?
1-3
32 Company background: Why did you start this company? How do the founders
know each other?
Andrea is a wheelchair user and a brilliant mind who have decided to improve the quality
of life for the other wheelchair users starting from his own experience. Starting from his
own experience in transferring he stared thinking about the possibility of improving transfer
safety and physical stress for him and his relatives. With this dream in mind he had the
chance to meet Emilio.
Emilio was and ids the owner of a small company devoted to the development of robotic
prototype for different industrial purposes. Form this meeting the idea of development a
safer and wheelchair embedded transfer system started.
Giovanni was already collaborating with Emilio’s company at that time, he was interested
in improving strategies for supporting disable persons thus he got involved in the
Avanchair project as well as Roberta, Emilio’s daughter. Roberta is aware of disable
persons problem because of past volunteer experience and might contribute with the soft
skills and organizational expertise developed along with her scientific education and job as
well as her recently updates on pharmaceutical and medical device.
33 Please list each founder's name, position, email, LinkedIn, and a quick
background.

5. ANDREA DEPALO
Patent inventor and long-experienced disabiliy-right activist . Founder of Avanchair
Linkedin:https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrea-depalo-9311068b/
Email: andrea.depalo@avanchair.com / andrea.depalo@gmail.com
ROBERTA RIGOLIO
Master in Pharmaceutical marketing and management, a PhD in Neuroscience, she is a
Senior scientist on multiple sclerosis and a science manager at Università di Milano
Bicocca. She is one of the funder of the start-up and she is mainly responsible for
supporting Avanchair activity organization and marketing, sharing this last function with the
CINO, Andrea.
E-mail: roberta.rigolio@avanchair.com / roberta.rigolio@gmail.com
LINKEDIN:https://www.linkedin.com/in/roberta-rigolio-6878b63/
GIOVANNI NANINI
Industrial Automation Engineering at Politecnico di Milano with experties in PLC, Robot
and Machine Vision Programming therefore he is the reference for software
implementation and support in improving mechanical functionalities. He is an Avanchair
funder and start-up CTO
LINKEDIN : https://www.linkedin.com/in/giovanni-nanini-5a329019/
E-mail: ut4@rigolioemilio.com / giovanni.nanini@gmail.com/
giovanni.nanini@avanchair.com
RIGOLIO EMILIO
Funder and owner of Emilio Rigolio company since 1980, he is Avanchair founder and
CEO. He is the designer and manufacturer of automation robotic customized equipmentS
for different industrial business requirements. At the present he is the main investors for
wheelchair prototype development– LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emilio-rigolio-
b305b3114/
E-mail: ut@rigolioemilio.com / emilio.rigolio@avanchair.com
General
34 Toyota Startup Awards privacy policy
I have read and accept ISDI Accelerator's privacy policy
35 How did you hear about this program?
We have been advised about this program by ENEL INNOVATION HUBS. The contest
represents our core values, so we are glad to apply.