Permobil F5 Corpus VS

Standing & Seating System

Standing is associated with many health benefits, including pressure relief, and aiding both respiration and digestion, and also promoting the muscular-skeletal system. However, the benefits extend beyond that to include the social benefit of being able to interact with people face to face, and functional advantages such as improved reach.

The F5 VS features the most sophisticated standing system available on a powerchair, the result of decades of experience, and best allows you to enjoy these benefits of standing. The fully programmable stand function allows you to stand from a variety of positions – whether supine, semi-reclined, or sat down – and your unique stand motions can be saved so your chair works in harmony with the natural movements of your body. Adjustable knee and chest supports keep you safe and secure while stood, and if you have the arm function the chest support can be fitted and removed independently – unlike the straps on some competitors’ models, which fall inaccessible to you behind the backrest.

The F5 Corpus VS can be driven when standing, although this should only be on flat smooth surfaces – primarily indoors or in a shopping-centre type environment. The self-adjusting support wheels descend automatically to keep you stable, and retract when you return to a seated position.

As suggested by the name, the Corpus seating system featured across the Permobil range is present on the F5 Corpus VS. This seating system is comfortable, supportive and stable, allowing you to use your powerchair throughout the day. The Corpus Ergo backrest features soft two-layer foam, and Stretch-Air fabric is present on both cushion and backrest – breathable and washable. The prestigious Roho range of air cushions and backrests can be fitted to your chair instead, providing ultimate levels of comfort and pressure relief.

The full range of powered seat functions come as standard on the F5 VS, including a seat riser, both forward and backwards tilt, powered elevating and articulating legrests, and a full 180° lie-flat recline. While other high-end chairs only feature around 170-175° of recline, the F5 VS offers a true lie-flat function. The BodyNatural system ensures your positioning components – including backrest, headrest and armrests – stay in the same position relative to your body, reducing the risk of shear and ensuring you are always supported.

Active Height lets you drive at 3.2 mph with the seat elevated, matching the walking pace of your companions, allowing you to continue to socialise, and reducing neck strain. Unlike Quantum’s iLevel or Quickie’s C-Me equivalents, Active Height does not lock out your suspension, keeping your ride smooth at all times. A feature unique to Permobil chairs is Active Reach – a combination of forward tilt and lift that puts you in a position to engage with your environment that just can’t be achieved from a regular seated position. The anterior forward tilt is also useful for tone management as well as standing transfers.

Power Base

ComfortRide Pro suspension comes as standard on the F5, a true fully independent suspension, which absorbs jolts from terrain and obstacles with minimum translation to the user. We’ve tried it out, and there really isn’t a better ride from a front-wheel drive powerchair – the ride quality is exceptional. With a range of up to 21.5 miles your F5 can get you where you want to be, and boasts a top speed of 8 mph as standard. If off-roading is your thing, this Swedish-made powerchair is the obvious choice – the optional chunky snow tyres can deal with Scandinavian winters, so will have no problems with the relatively mild climate of southern England.

While front-wheel drive is not as common as it once was, it remains Permobil’s preferred drive wheel arrangement for its ideal blend of manoeuvrability for indoor use, and excellent handling outdoors. Front-wheel drive powerchairs don’t run the risk of grounding on slopes that mid-wheel drive ones do, and with their large drive wheels at the front have exceptional obstacle-climbing abilities. It also allows the best accessibility to your environment, with no castor wheels sticking out the front to get between you and your objective – whether that be a kitchen work-surface, bathroom sink or a desk.

Controls

Permobil chairs offer a level of customisation via programming above and beyond their competitors. The highly configurable R-Net system comes as standard, and the high-definition LCD joystick is our pick – letting you memorise your favourite seating positions and standing motions. Every aspect of your drive, seating and standing functions, and positioning can be individually programmed to match your requirements, and we will spend the time with you to get things spot-on.

If your control needs extend beyond a standard joystick, there are plenty of options available – whether that be a simple switch box for easy access to seat functions, alternate joysticks or special controls such as chin or head controls. Your F5 VS can be further expanded with Bluetooth or Infrared to master your environment – such as remote doors, dimming lights, or changing the channel on your TV.

Appearance

Permobil have long set the standard for stylish powerchairs – which is why their style is often copied by their competitors! With a sleek, clean look, the cabling is cleverly hidden to retain a neat appearance. A range of 13 shroud colours (plus several hydrographics) are available to complement the bodywork, whatever your style.

Verdict

The F5 Corpus VS is rightly considered the best standing powerchair available on the market – it truly is. It offers a more refined standing function than its competitors, a whole host of features not seen on them – such as Active Reach anterior tilt, and has an unmatched quality of design. The massive range of options ensures that it will match your requirements, and Permobil’s custom-build department are excellent at coming up with bespoke solutions when you require something a bit different.

Permobil now also offer a mid-wheel drive version – the M Corpus VS that features a more compact chassis and the ability to turn on the spot. If you need to access restricted spaces, then this is worth trying, as it offers enhanced manoeuvrability over the F5 VS.