Reflection - Prototype Arthur Lee

1. What are the difficulties that you have encountered during the process?
I have encountered a few difficulties along the way, such as finding certain ways where qualitative and quantitative research applies to the design consideration like when we want to measure effort, it will be rather difficult to find the device for measuring. For my product, I have encountered some difficulties with the sliding mechanics of my wheelchair table. 2. How do you overcome the difficulties encountered?
I overcame the design consideration problem by saying the unknown device and I found out that effort is measured by newtons so it will not be much of a problem. As for the mechanics for the sliding, I can research on the chairs that have tablet arms that use the same mechanism for the basis of the mechanics.3. What are the 2 key takeaways for this lesson? I have learnt about qualitative and quantitative research, which can be applied using questionares and measuring respectively.I also learnt how to apply concepts learnt today to my product

Ergonomics (Product Description and Idea Trigger)

2i) It is pink in colour which gives this a feminine feel to it and has two straight lines and have a few rounded curves that connect them. It is rather rigid because they are connected through the curves. It is rather light for a product of this size. Its simplistic and streamlined design is welcome. I assumed that they are some form of chopsticks that make it easy for the chopsticks beginners to use. It is not very versatile as the sticks are binded together by the curves, and I feel that it sometimes restricts the slightly more advanced users because they are rigid.

2ii) The considerations are basically how to make the chopsticks easier to use for beginners in this area. Other considerations include its simplistic colour and style of the product. As this is a type of chopsticks, considerations include the flexibility of the product so that it can grip the food, it includes the amount of heat it can resist for the temperature of the food can be really hot.

2iii)The elderly will no doubt face some difficulty with this product as it is rather rigid and because the elderly probably isn't that strong to grip the food. However its bright colours make it easy for the elderly to see.

2iv)

A)It is the buckle/strap that holds the device and chopsticks in place. Just click it in place.
B)It is basically device itself, it can adjust the rigidity of the chopsticks by moving the device up and down the chopsticks and clicking it in place. This design shows that this one applies to rounder chopsticks.

Ergonomics 2

1. What is Ergonomics?
The study of people's efficiency in their working environment. It is about making things comfy and efficient for the user.
-Taken from mac dictionary and http://ergonomics.about.com/od/ergonomicbasics/a/ergo101.htm

2. What are the 5 aspects of Ergonomics?
They are:
Safety
Comfort
Ease of use
Productivity/performance
Aesthetics

3. For each aspects of Ergonomics, explain with an example of a product that is designed for the elderly, how the product meet that particular aspect of Ergonomics.
For Safety, the product called Pathlighter Lighted Cane is a walking can that is lighted at the bottom so that the elderly can have more assurance when walking in dark. So if an elderly man is walking in the dark with his Pathlighter Lighted Cane and a car is about to run over him, at least the driver will see the lighted cane and take evasive action.
Image:https://www.seniorssuperstores.com/cart/images/products/49_large.gif

For Comfort, a wheelchair is chosen by many different aspects including comfort , the wheelchair cushion must be comfortable enough for the elderly user as they will spend most of their time in the wheelchair. Thus, the Dual-Chamber Waterproof Gel Cushion is chosen as it is comfortable for the wheelchair user.
Image:http://www.1800wheelchair.com/siteimages/large/nyortho-gelcushion.jpg

For Ease of use, the Clarity 50900 has an easy to use interface and basically does the basic features of a phone, simplicity works best for the elderly after all.
Image:http://store.yourspecialneedssolutions.com/images/uploads/Cell%20Phone%20For%20Elderly/Phones-Cell-%20CLARITY-C900-Amplified-mobile-DetPic-.jpg

For Productivity/performance, handphones are also a symbol for productivity and thus another elderly friendly phone is chose.The Clarity 50900 has large and easy to see buttons, it can do the basic features of a normal phones and it is easy to use, this makes the elderly more proficient with the phone and thus more productive. It also sports an emergency button just in case of emergency.

For Aesthetics, handphones thee days have small buttons that are hard to see and hard to press. An elderly friendly phone such as the Doro PhoneEasy 345 Mobile with Bluetooth, it has the functions of normal cell phones these days and enlarged buttons and characters that make this phone elderly friendly.
Image:http://www.silverphone.co.uk/shop/images/345%20black%20white%20med.jpg

Sources :http://www.seniorssuperstores.com/cart/html/Products/SAFETY-PRODUCTS/ Taken from mac dictionary and http://ergonomics.about.com/od/ergonomicbasics/a/ergo101.htm http://www.1800wheelchair.com/asp/view-product.asp?product_id=3320 http://www.silverphone.co.uk/shop/p66/Doro-PhoneEasy-345-Mobile-with-Bluetooth/product_info.html?osCsid=4f071d3159713f8ee52ca194241ccf2d http://store.yourspecialneedssolutions.com/Telephones/Cell-Phones-For-The-Elderly/Cell-Phone-For-Elderly-Clarity-50900/prod_120.html

Ergonomics I

1) Workplace 1 is more cluttered and messy than workplace 2 which is nice, neat and spacious. Workplace 1 has a lot of unnecessary things on its table.
-For comfort and simplicity, workplace 1 is way too complicated in the case of the chairs that they are using and workplace 2 is much better. The person in workplace one is having trouble adjusting the height and position of the chair, whether the height is too low or high and the position too close or too far away from the desk,thus this also makes the chair uncomfortable. Workplace 2 however, uses the liberty chair which is easy to adjust to a comfortable height and position. It also has armrests and allows the user to lean back to increase comfort even more. The 2nd workplace also uses an access rail to allow the user to place items such as monitor and hence free up space on the table.
-For incorrect height and depth, workplace 1's user is having trouble to look at the screen and has to squint and use a magnifying glass to look at the screen of the monitor which means that the height and depth of the monitor is not correct.He uses a laptop but he needs to stack laptop on top of books. Workplace 2 however, utilises the M7 monitor arm to adjust the monitor to a suitable height and depth of the monitor for better viewing pleasure, and when the monitor is not needed, the arm allows it to go back and take up minimum space on the desk.The laptop holder allows the user to raise up the screen of the laptop to a comfortable price.
-For task lighting, workplace 1's user is having difficulty adjusting the lighting for him to do his work. The first lamp has a pretty bad design as it must be adjusting by moving the lamp which is hot because of the heat it produces when light is used. It will overheat which is dangerous for user, the user is thus unable to adjust the lights. It is way too bright, wrong position and glare from screen. While the other lights he uses is way too bright for him to see and seems like it cannot be adjusted. Workplace 2 however, utilises a different light, the lamp he utilises has a handle which is not hot so that he can adjust the light without worrying about burning his hand, it is not glaring.
-For freedom of movement, workplace 1's user does not have sufficient desk space as it is cluttered with papers and there are no special compartments for keyboard. The chair is yet again another problem, the armrest is way too high and not rigid enough causing the man's arm to drop. Workplace 2 however, uses the freedom chair which has adjustable armrests that are rigid and when not in use, does not take up much space on the chair, the chair also allows to user to lean back, this allows freedom of movement. There is also a neck rest to give support to the user.

2) The second workplace is preferred as it features good designs necessary for a neat, tidy and comfortable workplace. Some of these features include the freedom chair which has adjustable armrests that allows maximum comfort for the user. Another example would include M7 monitor arm that can adjust the height and depth of the monitor so that it is not a pain for the eyes.

3)The considerations should include freedom of movement, task lighting, height and depth and comfort and simplicity. These are needed for maximum convenience and productivity in the workplace.

4)It is important as man does work for most of his time so the way and method of doing the work can increase his efficiency. This could mean the difference of finishing work in time or not in time. If efficiency is increased, more work can be done and if this keeps up, it could also affect our economy and more, for the better.

Ergonomics
-study of workplace/work environment.
For ergonomics, we look at :
-Comfort:includes simplicity, space, efficiency, freedom of movement, lighting, physiological.
-Safety

Here are the four key recommendations of the report.

1)Housing for Seniors: It refers to keeping Singapore an elderly friendly place, where the elderly are part of the family. To fit the needs of the elderly, there will be many choices of housing for them and good support care services.

2)Accessibility for Seniors: As Singapore strives to be and elderly friendly place, the housing estates would be more elderly friendly and so would the transport system and the environment outside. The transport system will be more user friendly, and travel passages would be more elderly friendly as well, through the use of more accessible lifts and more.

3)Caring for Seniors: There will be eldercare and healthcare services that fit the different needs of the elderly. These services are easily accessible, affordable as well as efficient.

4)Opportunities for Seniors: Singapore aims to have the elderly lead healthy and active lives, they want the elderly to maintain good relationships with the rest of their family and friends. They also want the elderly to be actively involved in their community.

Here is one way the CAI report is recommending to make our public housing more user friendly.
-The Government should consider introducing guidelines for the provision of accessibility and safety features in the homes for seniors, through a review of the Code on Barrier-Free Accessibility, to create a more elderly friendly environment, such as installing bright lighting to help the elderly with eyesight problems see better.

Here are two ways on how we can ensure that the quality of elderly care here in Singapore is affordable.
1)Special prices for elderly care equipment for the elderly, the government can allocate some of their money on the equipment such as walking aids.
2)Special subsidies for the elderly can be used when hiring caregivers, the older the person, the more the subsidy.

Here are the three things that I can do, as an SST student, to help overcome these elderly challenges.
1) I can accompany the elderly,especially our own grandparents, and give them the love and support they need.
2) SST students can help raise funds to aid the elderly, as a school activity like other school.
3) Be an active helper when it comes to aiding the elderly.

Elderly Challenge - Observation 4

This week, I am going to do a conclusion on the elderly problems, I will give a general view on the elderly. As my grandparent is in Hong Kong, I would not be able to use his input so the information i will use would be from the web. I will be going into further detail into one of the previous problems I did.
One problem I have alliterated before is climbing stairs. Most elderly have problems climbing stairs, according to the aging parents society, 30 percent of people over 65 and 50 percent of people over 80 will tend to fall once in the next year, and this sometimes caused by the danger of stairs.
-As some elderly have eyesight problems, sometimes the cause of falls is because of eyesight. To counter that, staircases should be well lit, this will help reduce the chances of falling.
-The elderly themselves, must not rush up or down the stairs just to do small things such as take a phone call , its not worth it to fall and hurt themselves over a phone call. The elderly should always take their time when climbing stairs.
-Hand railings must be of adequate height and size so that the elderly can have a nice firm grip which will help reduce the likelihood of falling down the stairs. According to the aging parents society, it should be 36 to 39 inch tall. Seniors over 60 should get a habit of grabbing the railing.
-One way to help reduce the chances is helping the elderly in shape to climb stairs more easily. Exercises such as walking and leg stretching would prove useful.
-Seniors might have problems that inhibit them from climbing the stairs, such as inner ear infections which will affect their balance. Thus, it is best if they are checked.

Elderly Challenge - Observation 3

This week, I am going to narrow down the problems to those the elderly wheelchair users face. There are certain disadvantages the wheelchair users have that normal people take for granted, this also applies to those who use walking aids too as their injuries do not completely hinder them from walking like those who are wheelchair bound. Like the previous post I will be listing five problems and five solutions to match it, one problem and solution will be listed into three topics: Knee and leg pains(the main topic), Blurred eyesight and Weak hand and arms
Knee and leg pains
- A problem that most wheel chair bound people is that they will find it hard to move up steps as they are riding on wheels and they would have to lift their body weight and the wheelchair's weight in order for them to tilt the chair to move up just one step. If it is comparatively hard to move up just one step, it would be near impossible to go up one flight of stairs without assistance.
- The problem has been solved by a company, they made a product called the IBOT 4000. It has been approved by the FDA(the Food and Drug Administration). It is able to go up or down a flight of stairs whether with assistance or not. There are two sets of drive wheels that rotate up and over each other and help the user go up the stairs. It is an automatic wheelchair in a sense that it is controlled using robotics and not through pushing the wheels like those of a conventional wheelchair.

Blurred eyesight
-One problem that most wheelchair bound and partially blind people face is that they will find it hard to navigate, as a stick could not be used to sense what is around them when both hands are occupied rolling the chair, thus coupling both wheelchair and blindness is a bad combination.
-There are not that many solutions to this but the most obvious one would be having a helper to help guide the handicapped person around and have that person navigate the handicapped person around. This may not be the best solution as it will give the handicapped person a feeling that he or she has to depend on others to get by.
Weak hand and arms
-Another problem is that wheel chair bound people have a certain restriction on how high the person can reach. The limit is much lower than that of a normal person as the wheelchair bound people have to sit all the time.
-This problem can also be solved by the IBOT 400 as well. As mentioned before, the IBOT 400 has four wheels. It can change into a mode where two wheels are used to support the whole wheel chair while the other two are lifted so that the user can reach things that are higher than they can reach on conventional wheel chairs.

By Turning Point Productions. Title: Think! A wheelchair user's daily struggle

video url: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cB0PI3lsYGk