Shoe Helper
By Huang, Andy; Perkins, John; Rosen, Alyx; Bohs, Larry; NSF 2008 Engineering Senior Design Projects to Aid Persons With Disabilities, pp. 46-47Publication Date: 2011
Description of an assistive device designed to aid a client with cerebral palsy and limited mobility in her legs to put on socks and shoes. The Shoe Helper, which was developed by engineering students at the Pratt School of Engineering at Duke University, includes a shoehorn and a heel cup constructed from hand molded thermoplastic and connected together with a metal hinge. The shoehorn guides the user’s heel and also serves as the main component of the sock aid. The heel cup provides a rigid structure that prevents the heel of the shoe from collapsing. The shoehorn and heel cup are connected via a steel trap hinge, sandwiched in place with thermoplastic. A hiker’s lace is attached to the top of the shoehorn to allow for rotation. For use as a sock aid, the string is first threaded through a thermoplastic bracket attached to the back of the heel cup, allowing the user to pull on the string from the heel cup end of the device. The designers report that putting on her shoes, which required up to 30 minutes of the client’s time prior to receiving the Shoe Helper, can now be accomplished in under 4 minutes. Cost of producing the device was about 18 dollars.
Published by: Creative Learning Press, Inc. (Website:http://www.creativelearningpress.com)
Link to text: http://nsf-pad.bme.uconn.edu/2008/Chapter%206,%20Duke%20University.pdf
ISBN: 1-931280-15-0
