
Model car remote control adaptation
On a holiday a few years ago, Leon watched a family member having fun with a high speed remote control model car and really wanted to have a go!
However, Leon has damage to his spinal cord, which results in paralysis from the chest down and whilst he can move his arms, he has little or no control over his hand or fingers.
This means that Leon cannot use any of the standard types of remote control supplied with model cars. So, to achieve his dream, he realised that a bespoke controller which could be used with his limited range of arm movements and dexterity would be required.
Leon reached out directly to REMAP for help.
The Challenge
Leon is a keen X-Box gamer and already has some specialised Logitech games controllers, which were designed specifically for disabled people. He is also very skilled with the controls his motorised wheelchair.
We decided that the best approach would be to design a custom designed remote control with large switches that can be operated with the palm of the hand and a T-bar joystick similar to the one used on his wheelchair.
For the remote control electronics, Leon purchased a standard remote controller that was suitable for his choice of model car and accepted that it could end up damaged during the rehousing work!
The solution
The start of the process was to dismantle the original remote control and remove all of the electronics and controls.
It soon became apparent that the switches, potentiometers and joystick of the original control would be too small and fragile to use in the final build and so alternative, more robust but electrically equivalent parts were sourced.
The first prototype was created by designing a custom case which could be 3d printed to house all of the electronics.
This was mounted onto a wooden tray that could be placed on Leon’s lap whilst he was seated in his wheelchair. We also added a custom designed phone holder, which would allow access to the setup app for the remote control and also provide a real time display of key car parameters.
Initial trials of the prototype revealed that the wooden base was slightly too wide, the industrial green switches required more force to press that Leon could manage and the T-bar on the joystick was larger than required.
Following a bit more tinkering and the creation of some custom made low force switches, the final design was ready for testing in our special product testing department!
You can watch a video of one of the tests here: Testing department
We then handed over to Leon to do some final testing and he was delighted with the result. At last he would be able to take control of a high speed remote control car in the real world and not just on the X-box.
The benefit
You can watch some videos of Leon trying the remote for the first time here:
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