ADAPTIVE CRICKET BAT
-------- CUSTOMIZED ADAPTATION --------- PURPOSE: To create a custom adapted cricket bat for motorized wheelchair users to use in to play an adaptive cricket game. This adaptation of the game was developed by the Recreation Service at Northcott in Austrailia. A physiotherapist at Northcott contacted TADNSW to find out if it would be possible to create a cricket bat for individuals who use a wheelchair and have no upper body strength. The bat needed to be adapted and useable to attach to all the various types of motorized wheelchairs available. A traditional clamping or bolt method was impractical. A yoga mat was glued to an MDF board to protect the wheelchairs and then slots were created in the MDF board and double-sided Velcro was used to hang the board off the wheelchair arm rests. For further stability, tie downs were placed through the slots strapping the device to the chair a preferable method to bolting the device onto the chair. The cricket bat was then mounted on a rail and onto a medium-density fiberboard (MDF) board enabling the bat to slide through roughly one meter so it can be used by left- and right-handed batsmen. The bat is able to tilt giving the batsman many more stroke options, and when the bat is fully forward, the batsman is able to see the bat without much head movement or no matter where the head is positioned. The bat was tested with a commercially available bowling machine, and modifications were made to enable a wheelchair user to run their chair up a customized ramp, allowing the force of the wheelchair to tip the trigger switch and launch the ball. Designers continue to fine tune this component, widening and lengthening the ramp to give the wheelchairs better access. The bat itself is twice the width of a regular cricket bat with a similar shape. JOURNAL: TAD Journal. REF: Volume 32, Number 1, April 2012: p. 6-7. PAGES: 3 with cover.
Notes:
This product record was updated on September 1, 2012.
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Technical Aid to the Disabled (TAD)
TADNSW is a charity organisation that has the authority to fundraise. TAD uses volunteers dedicated to the design, construction and provision of aids for people with disabilities. Members of TAD provide a resource pool comprising a range of design, engineering, rehabilitation, computer, therapy and other professional and technical skills. Aids custom-designed by TAD volunteers are described in the TAD Journal.Locked Bag 2008
Wentworthville, New South Wales 2145
Australia
Telephone: 011-61-2-9912-3400.
Fax: 011-61-2-9890-1911.
Web: http://www.tadnsw.org.au.
Email: tad@tadnsw.org.au.
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