Spring 2022<\/p>\n\n\n\n
People look forward to Shabbos as a day to daven in shul and enjoy\nthe company of other Shomer Shabbos<\/em> members of the community. Unfortunately,\nthere are people with mobility issues who are housebound on Shabbos and, for\nthem, Shabbos is a lonely day. But thanks to newly developed technology by\nMovinglife, an Israeli firm, the housebound now are afforded a new opportunity\nto rejoin the tzibbur<\/em> and to enhance their enjoyment of Shabbos. We are\nvery excited to announce STAR-K certification of the Shabbatto folding scooter,\na new personal mobility device with a Shabbat Mode option. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The road to certification began with Movinglife contacting STAR-K\nto discuss their project. After approaching STAR-K to seek certification, the\nMovinglife management team met with Rav Moshe Heinemann shlit<\/em>\u201da, STAR-K\u2019s\nposek<\/em> and Rabbinic Administrator, at his home. This initial meeting\nlasted a good few hours, during which Rav Heinemann explained in detail what he\nwould permit and what he would forbid for Shabbos use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Movinglife subsequently programmed the scooter\u2019s Shabbos mechanism\nsuch that it followed Rav Heinemann\u2019s halachic<\/em> guidelines. They showed\nthe result to the Rav, who called for some further minor changes. Once those\nchanges were incorporated, the final product was tested by STAR-K. We are now\nable to certify that the Shabbos mechanism for Shabbatto folding scooters fully\nmeets all of Rav Heinemann\u2019s requirements. Thus, the Shabbatto is the only scooter\nto currently meet STAR-K\u2019s Shabbos standards, for use by cholim<\/em> only.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Below are answers to\nfrequently asked questions concerning this scooter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The scooter may be used only by one who is designated to be a choleh<\/em>,\nin that he or she is unable to engage in normal Shabbos activities due to\nmobility issues. <\/strong>An Orthodox Rabbi must be consulted to decide whether a particular\nperson meets that criteria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Can the scooter be used on Shabbos in a public domain that does not\nhave an eruv<\/em>?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n No. It can be used on Shabbos only where there is a kosher eruv<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Can the scooter be used in any community?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n No. Poskim<\/em> of some communities may feel that it inappropriate\nfor a choleh<\/em> to use a scooter on Shabbos, <\/em>or they may take issue\nwith the halachic<\/em> argument permitting its use. Therefore, the scooter\nmay be driven on Shabbos only in communities in which the poskim<\/em> condone\nits use, and driven to shul only if the rabbi permits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why is this scooter permissible on Shabbos?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Some melachos<\/em> are forbidden mi\u2019d\u2019Oraysa <\/em>(by the\nTorah) on Shabbos, while others are forbidden mi\u2019drabanan<\/em> (by Talmudic\ndecree). One is not allowed to perform an action which will immediately result\nin the occurrence of either a melacha d\u2019Oraysa<\/em> or a melacha d\u2019rabanan<\/em>.\nMoreover, barring extenuating circumstances, one is not allowed to perform any\naction which will result in a melacha d\u2019Oraysa <\/em>taking place even at some\nlater time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n However, to meet the specific needs of cholim<\/em> on Shabbos, Rav\nShlomo Zalman Auerbach zt\u201dl<\/em> allowed for the custom building of devices\nthat result in a melacha d\u2019rabanan<\/em> occurring after a brief delay. The\nShabbatto\u2019s Shabbat Mode mechanism relies on this principle of grama<\/em>. When\nthe scooter is in Shabbat Mode, it will not start moving immediately upon\nengaging the throttle; any movement is preceded by a few-second delay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why is it permissible to use the scooter\u2019s brakes on Shabbos?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The scooter will stop immediately upon the application of the hand\nbrakes, and there will not be any time delay. When in Shabbat Mode, the brakes\nwork mechanically, similar to the brakes on a bicycle. Since the brakes are\nmechanical and not electric, this is permitted on Shabbos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Is it appropriate to use the scooter in public on Shabbos?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n On Shabbos, a person driving the scooter must place a sign on\nthe back of the scooter stating that the user is a choleh<\/em><\/strong> due\nto impaired mobility<\/strong>, to mitigate the impression that he is\ndisrespecting Shabbos. A STAR-K approved sign is provided along with the\nShabbos mechanism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When in Shabbat Mode, are there any scooter controls which may not\nbe used?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n When in Shabbat Mode, all of the scooter\u2019s electric controls\nactivate only after a time delay of a few seconds. Any controls that activate\nimmediately are disabled. The one exception is the emergency horn, which does\nactivate immediately. Therefore, as its name suggests, it should only be used\nin an emergency<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Does the company that manufactures the scooter also manufacture the\nShabbos<\/strong> mechanism, or are they two different companies?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n They are one and the same. \nBecause Movinglife manufactures the scooter, they are able to seamlessly\nintegrate the Shabbos mechanism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How can I purchase this scooter?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In the USA, purchase information about the STAR-K approved\nShabbatto folding scooter is available online at foldingscooterstore.com or by\ncalling 1-888-492-2370.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Spring 2022<\/p>\n People look forward to Shabbos as a day to daven in shul and enjoy The road to certification began with Movinglife contacting STAR-K Movinglife […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":9270,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[224,27,318,328,226],"tags":[247,229,282,246,279,248],"class_list":["post-9265","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-kashrus-kurrents-2022","category-kashrus-kurrents","category-kashrus-kurrents-in-app","category-medical-article-in-app","category-spring-kashrus-kurrents-2022","tag-folding-scooter","tag-kashrus-kurrents","tag-medical-device","tag-mobility-device","tag-sabbath-mode","tag-shabbat-mode"],"yoast_head":"\nWho can use this scooter on Shabbos?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\nthe company of other Shomer Shabbos members of the community. Unfortunately,
\nthere are people with mobility issues who are housebound on Shabbos and, for
\nthem, Shabbos is a lonely day. But thanks to newly developed technology by
\nMovinglife, an Israeli firm, the housebound now are afforded a new opportunity
\nto rejoin the tzibbur and to enhance their enjoyment of Shabbos. We are
\nvery excited to announce STAR-K certification of the Shabbatto folding scooter,
\na new personal mobility device with a Shabbat Mode option. <\/p>\n
\nto discuss their project. After approaching STAR-K to seek certification, the
\nMovinglife management team met with Rav Moshe Heinemann shlit\u201da, STAR-K\u2019s
\nposek and Rabbinic Administrator, at his home. This initial meeting
\nlasted a good few hours, during which Rav Heinemann explained in detail what he
\nwould permit and what he would forbid for Shabbos use.<\/p>\n