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Sirpete said:
....design a transporter for people who have lost limbs or who are invalid, which allows them to effectively stand up, why should they be stuck with wheel chairs and have everyone look down to them? What do you think, can't be that difficult, can it?

ROSYART said:

Maybe someone could draw a design and put it up here on Eyefetch for us to see, and discuss.

AudreyHarwick said:
There are such devices out there, but I am sure they are pricy.  When my hubby went on cruise to Alaska there was a lady with one.  She couid be seated or could be raised up into a standing position.  There were lots of motors and she was pretty much strapted in to where her arms were the only free things, even her head had protection from the back so she couldn't back into low hanging objects.  I didn't see her in the standing postion too often so I am inclined to think it might not have been as comfortable as the seated position but at least she had a choice.

I am sure as the population gets older we will see more (better) items like these so grandma can do the dishes and grab a glass of wine on her own.

PaulTyrer said:
Its a very interesting challenge you have put down here Pete, particularly in light of the number of Soldiers coming back from Afghanistan with limbs blown off!

I myself was very lucky not to lose the bottom half of my leg after a Karting accident when I was 17 (it was a very good year....)

When you consider the advances in micro and nano technology these days, and the Japanese (Honda) developing robots that can walk up and down stairs and run, you would think it would not be a quantum leap to develop something to make disabled people's lives easier.

But then it costs money doesn't it............

PaulTyrer said:
When I was an apprentice at the UKAEA (United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority), one of the Engineering Directors suffered a stroke which affected his mobility in his legs.

Our Mechanical Engineering Instructor set us a task, to Design and Build some sort of apparatus which could be presented to the Director and hopefully help with his rehab!

There were some weird and wacky ideas ranging from an old stores bike set on a frame with an adjustable roller acting on the rear wheel (to increase resistance), to mine which was a perspex 'roller' (like a see-saw), water filled, which acted on a rocker so that the movement of the water made the rocker move to try to get movement in the ankle!

I'm not sure now which one won and was presented (if any), but it got the creative juices going!!

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