Poop Scoop Holder for Wheelchair User with Assistance Dog

7th August 2024

This client required a holder for a poop scoop on his wheelchair when he left the house with his assistance dog.

Handles for JLL treadmill

13th June 2024

I was asked to attach some handles to a treadmill for a seven-year-old as the original handles were too high for him to reach.

Remote Dog Kennel Opener

27th February 2024

A device was required to open a dog kennel when the carers had left the client was in bed.

The client has MND and was unable to get into bed on his own, but his carers were not happy with the client’s dog being free when they were helping him into bed.

I found and used a commercially available door catch and lock that only required 12volts to open it. A small remote and circuit finished off the lock / release mechanism. So, I just had to make a door and fit it to the kennel.

bespoke kitchen step

8th December 2023

This client required a bespoke step so they could reach the kitchen work surface and help to cook with family members.

Mouth / air operated air rifle trigger

17th March 2023

The client has little strength in his arms and has involuntary movement in his hands, so is unable to use a standard trigger on an air rifle. The item required needed to be removable as the rifle used was a loan rifle from the gun club. The trigger driver can be seen below the rifle with the red light on it, also the air tube can just be seen.

Lastly, I had to support the butt of the rifle in some way so the client didn’t have to hold the rifle’s weight. He has some movement in his shoulder so a strap passes over his shoulder to help ease and aim the rifle.

Above servo pushes on the trigger. It clamps around the trigger guard.

Arduino nano, 9V battery and a Adafruit LPS33HW Water Resistant Pressure Sensor.

Butt support, the client could move his shoulder a little.

Rollator carrier for electric chair

15th August 2022

The challenge was to construct a bracket to hold a three wheeled Rollator onto a electric chair so the client could access smaller shops that his chair would not fit into.

Overlocker Hand Controller 2

21st March 2022

A request for assistance was received from the Cambridgeshire panel member who had seen the previously constructed hand controller. The client was unable to use her feet to to operate the foot control for her overlocker sewing machine.

Handlebar extension

4th January 2022

I was challenged to produce a handlebar for a girl that was smaller and closer to her body because she liked to support her hand on the bar. The original handlebar was smaller than a normal bike handlebar in diameter so I had to create the correct size brackets to fit the bar and also make them adjustable in length and rotation.

Access to toilet

10th November 2021

The challenge was to allow the child with leg amputation below the knee to access his toilet and allowing him to be more independent.
the client had some small steps that he could climb and get onto the toilet but he had no room to manoeuvre once he was on the toilet seat.

Ball Thrower for dog

25th June 2021

The popular and easily available ball “flinger” used by many dog owners requires a certain amount of upper arm strength and dexterity which the Client did not have.  A simple powered version was required that did not require any external power source and could be mounted on the Client’s wheelchair.

Boggy board for electric wheel chair

1st April 2021

Client with Limb Girdle muscular dystrophy could only walk short distance before pain in legs required a fitting to her wheel chair so that when her child who is being tested for the same condition got tired, the child could ride on a platform or could ride on so the family could get out more.

If the child was sitting on the client the clients legs took a long time to recover.

We could not find a suitable tow along device as the child was getting heaver and available devices only took 25Kg so were unstable.

Wheelchair Rocking Table

5th November 2020

The concept called for a table mounted on inclined links from a floor-mounted base that was large enough and strong enough to accommodate a child in a wheelchair.  Movement by a child in the wheelchair would cause the table to rock back and forth.

The item had to be use-able in a school environment where many of the children are severely disabled.  Safety was therefore paramount as although supervision levels were high, there was still the possibility of a child playing at floor level nearby.

Loading the wheelchair onto the table had to be easy.

Cookie Monster Toy-Jelly Bean Switch

3rd August 2020

The small boy was not able to activate his Cookie Monster toy himself. It needed it’s mouth squeezed closed to make it talk.

Long Stick with cushioning feature

28th May 2020

The Client was a lady, registered blind, whose Guide Dog had retired. His successor lasted about six weeks before deciding that the life of a Guide Dog was not for him and the lady is now reliant on a long white stick until a replacement dog can be trained.

She lives on a narrow boat with her partner and often has to navigate along tow paths, not the most level of surfaces, and was finding that the shocks that occurred when she hit an obstacle were hurting her wrists. The request was for some form of cushioning feature.

The life style of the Client often required her to navigate her way along canal tow paths, whilst her partner steered the boat between locks.

The challenge was to replicate the features of a standard long stick used for guidance and as supplied through the RNIB.  This included the ability to fold it for convenience and to build in a cushioning feature which would come into use when the stick came into end contact with an obstacle on the ground.

The standard sticks supplied through the RNIB do not have such a feature and are perfectly rigid.

The stick thus has to retain the “feel” of a standard stick, be light in weight, and be sufficently robust enough to with stand the use and abuse that it might suffer in use.

Special Doll

9th April 2020

A request was received from a local Children’s Hospital.  A two-year old girl who had sepsis had indicated that she would like a doll that more closely resembled her condition.  Could we manage to create such an item?

Cooker Hob Guard Modification

30th March 2020

The client is a power wheelchair user in her home. She had experienced an accident while trying to remove a pan from her cooker hob.

The gas taps for the hob were at the front of the hob, in the centre so available hob guards were unsuitable.

Window Opener

10th February 2020

The client had trouble opening windows in her kitchen due to height / mobility issues. She also had psoriasis which made gripping any kind of implement a struggle due to dry skin. The challenge was to design a strong unit, which allowed the user to open windows from a distance, with strong sturdy grips so she could correctly operate the unit.

Joystick To USB Mouse Adaptor

28th January 2020

Adam’s passion was always video games, but he is no longer able to use a game controller, or more recently, even to move a computer mouse.  He also relies on his computer for many other purposes. The ‘Special Effects’ company had tried ‘eye gaze’ software but this was unsuccessful in Adam’s case.

Tray with Handle

2nd January 2020

On visiting the client it was found access to her kitchen was restricted so she is unable to use a kitchen trolley to get her food etc. from the kitchen to her table, after discussions it was decided that a small tray with a handle would help, the standard tray was too big and cumbersome to use. the challenge was to put some handles onto a small tray

Mobility Scooter Speed Control Lever Exensions

12th December 2019

The client has a medical condition that restricts the movement of her hands. She was having difficulty using the short speed control levers on her mobility scooter.

Bed Controller Modification

12th December 2019

To provide the client with a way to control his adjustable bed without damaging the existing handset controller with his teeth.

Special School Bed Modifications

12th December 2019

The special school’s very large activity beds had only been provided with canvas panels for two sides each and the fixings of the tops of these panels to the bed posts were inadequate and liable to tear and sag. The company that had supplied the beds was no longer trading.

Sewing Machine Speed Controller

6th December 2019

The client, who is a wheelchair user, was not able to use the foot operated speed controller for her new overlocker sewing machine.

Air Mask Microphone

6th December 2019

The client needs to wear a positive air pressure mask which covers her nose and mouth at all times, but the mask makes it difficult for others to hear her when she speaks.