Open Source 3-D Printing/Adaptive Aid

This is a project that supports the course Open Source 3-D Printing

Arthritis is a debilitating disease that effects a body's joints, causing pain, which in turn limits the forces patients can produce. According to the CDC, by 2040, an estimated 78 million (26%) US adults aged 18 years or older are projected to have doctor-diagnosed arthritis.[1] For those who suffer from arthritis in the hands, even simple tasks such as opening jars can be cumbersome and painful, but most importantly, it can limit independence. Commercial systems are expensive [2]. For example, a simple adaptive aid commercial spoon costs 10X what a normal spoon costs on Amazon. As we know distributed 3-D printing can often radically reduce costs. In this assignment we will leverage basic science and design to help those that are suffering from arthritis gain some independence at a low cost.

Assignment[edit | edit source]

Check mechanical properties of your filament using assigned specs from sheet handed out in class : print 5X horizontal ASTM_D638-14_Type4_FINAL.stl
Identify an Arthritis aides or Arthritis products that you would like to design to be an open source 3D printable technology
Make sure someone else has not already done it : Yeggi
Reserve your product by signature tagging with ~~~~ in the next section 'project reservations'. You should add your own ideas to the list even if you already have one. More than one of you can tackle the same technology in a different way. You may also improve upon existing designs if you do so in a significant way. Do this today
Design 3D printable components with ONLY OS CAD packages (e.g. Blender or OpenSCAD or FreeCAD)
Publish a picture, stl and source code for your design on https://www.myminifactory.com/
In the description on MyMiniFactory include the approximate cost of your print and then compare it to a commercial offering with their price.
Add picture, and link to your project page in gallery below.
Print component and 5 tensile test coupons and bring to class in bag - See due dates on syllabus