Project Design for Specific Users

The caseowner for this project has Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) and uses an electrically assisted wheelchair that can be coupled to an electric handbike. Firstly, research and interviews were conducted to identify the main challenges the caseowner faces daily, specifically independent coupling/decoupling of his handbike onto his wheelchair. Through phases of ideation and conceptualization, prototypes were created to assist the caseowner in performing the coupling/decoupling independently and more easily. The solutions created are a motorized jack for coupling, decoupler for decoupling, and a laser bracket for alignment. These three solutions all together help make this process much easier for him to carry out.

PROJECT TIMELINE

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Case Owner

Research

Ideation

Conceptualization

Result

Appendix

The case owner (CO) is a 10-year-old boy with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), a disease affecting the muscles, progressively making them weaker over time. Currently, he uses an electrically assisted manual wheelchair, that can be coupled to an electric hand bike, to get around. We work together with him and his parents, who are both able bodied.

The research phase outlines several methods carried out to gain a good understanding of the case owner’s needs and challenges. It details the literature research, interview and observations which resulted in identifying key problems the case owner faces and a defined design challenge.

Following the ideation phase, the defined solutions were worked out in detail. This phase entails the three separate concepts that all together, make the process of attaching/detaching his hand bike relatively easier for him. As the CO wishes to be more independent, emphasis was placed on creating solutions that make the entire process as effortless as possible for him.

The result of the codesign are 3 products which addresses different issues within the bigger problem of (de)coupling the handbike. For the problem of aligning the handbike a laser setup was created. For the problem of coupling the handbike an automated jack system was modelled. Lastly for the problem of decoupling an extended lever was created.

On this page all the extra documented information regarding the project can be found.

Following the research phase, the ideation phase started with coming up with several iterations of solutions that could help ease the CO’s challenges. This phase details the initial ideation and codesigning with the case owner that led to the chosen directions.

Project done by

Jay Adam - Aisling Amponsah - Minke Hasan - Max Probert -Vince Scheenstra - Alina Suhood - Tjeerd de Vries

Project Coordinator: Francesca Toso - f.toso@utwente.nl