Abstract: A battery booster for a wheelchair electrical system powered by two twelve volt batteries that includes a twelve volt power socket of conventional standardized configuration for receiving battery-boosting power from a twelve volt power source such as a vehicle cigarette lighter. Power received at the socket charges the wheelchair batteries either through a switch for selectively connecting the batteries in series for operation or parallel for charging, or through a timer and relay arrangement for automatically charging the batteries in alternating sequence.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for monitoring blood pressure by a transducer engaging a flexible part of a body near capillaries and remote from an artery. The transducer provides an electrical signal when actuated by blood pressure pulses or changes in the capillaries. The transducer is releasably secured to the body by a gripping means preferably in the form of a clothespin. The transducer includes a strip with two strain gages disposed one on each respective side of the strip such that the blood pressure pulses flex the strip causing a change in the electrical resistance of the gages. Preferably, the apparatus has electronic circuitry to convert the change in the resistance of the strain gages to a voltage signal indicative of blood pressure and devices for recording and displaying blood pressure.