wheelchair accessible cot
The client, a wheelchair user, wanted to be able to put his young child in her cot on his own.
The Challenge
The client, a wheelchair user, wanted to have good access to his child’s cot. This required raising the cot on a support frame so that the client’s legs could pass under the cot and one side of the cot to open like barn doors, rather than a fixed side. No commercial solutions exist.
The main risk was the instability of the whole cot. This was overcome by fixing it to the wall in two places. Secondly, the barn doors had to be closed and locked securely in such a way that the child couldn’t open them and fall out. This was achieved using some 3D-printed parts and toggle catches.
The solution
The cot was raised on a cross braced wooden frame. Dowels were used to locate the cot and frame together.
One of the cot sides was cut in two and additional wooden battens used to form two separate hinged doors.
A modified toggle catch was used at the top of the doors to secure them.
At the bottom, a 3D printer catch was made to clamp the doors to the main bed frame.
This C shaped clamp would swing up and clamp the doors shut.
The cot was secured to the wall on two sides using 3D printed blocks.
The final solution looked like this.
The benefit
The client is now able to put his child in her cot independently from his wheelchair. Once the doors are closed the doors, he is safe in the knowledge that she is secure in her cot.
The client emailed me after putting his child to bed for the first time and said how wonderful it was to be able to do what, for most parents, is a simple thing.
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