Engineering news
The “ingenious” engineering was celebrated by the Remap charity in London, honouring the volunteers who dedicated themselves to ambitious projects to help disabled people around the UK.
In Cambridge, Remap volunteers adapted an everyday wheelchair to tackle the rugged terrain of Mount Snowdon, the highest mountain in England and Wales at 1,085m. Named after Sir Edmund Hillary, who conquered Everest with Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, the wheelchair was modified with a frame with a front wheel for steering and braking, and fixings for pulling straps.
“I stripped down an old BMX bike and fixed its front end using U-bolts and pipe clamps,” said volunteer engineer Fred Harrison. “A lifting and pushing frame was connected to the rear of the wheelchair directly into its anti-tip sockets.”
Wheelchair user Rosie used the modified chair to climb Snowdon with a team for the Back-Up Trust, a charity for people with spinal cord injuries, before the frame was removed and the wheelchair returned to everyday use.
Remap is speaking to the Royal National Institute of Blind People after new volunteer Rupert Powell revolutionised football fan Ian’s match experiences – and his day-to-day life. Mitochondrial dysfunction meant Ian was unable to see the players and ball while sitting at the touchline during Liverpool games at his beloved Anfield, instead listening to radio commentary and soaking up the atmosphere.
Knowing that Ian can see short-range, high-contrast images, Rupert incorporated a camera with a motorised zoom, an image-processing computer and an LCD video display into a VR headset, showing Ian the game in detail for the first time.
“It amused me that his priority was the football but now he can do lots of independent things he couldn’t before. That is very exciting,” Remap chief executive David Martin told Professional Engineering. “Our intention is to provide a bespoke solution for an individual but occasionally something comes along and people think that a lot of people would benefit from that.”
He added: “You can see, with some of the projects, what a huge difference they make.” A 3D-printed attachment for a ‘rollator’ walker, which gave amputee Eilian the freedom to get around independently, was a “life-changing” modification, he said.
“3D printing really transforms both the speed and the process of producing… and it also means they are easier to replicate if somebody needs another one. That’s probably the biggest impact at the moment and more of our groups are investing in 3D printers to help them with their projects.”
Other award-winning projects included a handle to help paraplegic Bob Crump into his Range Rover for off-road driving, a bathroom platform for Margaux, a young girl with dwarfism who struggled to use the sink, and a custom wheelchair to help Elaine Smith with motor neurone disease move around her canal narrowboat.
“I am blown away by the ingenuity of Remap’s engineers,” said presenter Dave Henson, an engineer and Paralympian. “They are coming up with some really unique, creative solutions which have a massive impact on people’s lives.”
Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.