Adaptive equipment are devices that are used to assist with completing activities of daily living.
Bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, and feeding are self-care activities that are including in the spectrum of activities of daily living (ADLs). Jennifer McLaughlin Maly a P.T./ D.P.T. in her article located in the journal Exceptional Parent gives a more complete definition of adapative equipment: "Typically, a piece of adaptive equipment is utilized to increase a child's function. Examples of adaptive equipment or assistive technology are wheelchairs, lifts, standing frames, gait trainers, augmentative communication devices, bath chairs, and recreational items such as swings or tricycles."[1]
A growing market for adaptive equipment is in the use of mobility vans. In this case, adaptive equipment, also known as assistive technology, can help a person with a disability operate a motor vehicle when otherwise they would not be able to.[2]