Carry Crutches – Cup holder for people who use crutches

“We know that sometimes, helping people do the simplest tasks can have a tremendous impact, that's why our team created the Carry Crutches" said Tomas Garces, a design engineer at General Electric Firstbuild and member of Team Carry Crutches. "To have a person on the team who has a need for the device was integral to our design process and we look forward to seeing how people on Thingiverse improve upon it.”

The team designed a 3D printed gimbal inspired by those used to steady a camera on an aerial drone. The team developed two versions of the cup holder: a mechanical version that costs only $15 in materials and combines 3D printed parts with ball bearings, and an electronic version features a Raspberry Pi, servo motors and an accelerometer and costs $30 to build.

Makerbot made available several free 3D designs for assistive devices and challenged Thingiverse makers to improve on them and contribute further designs that could improve the quality of life for people like Lathrop. The 3D designs were based on prototypes from the Bay Area Makeathon for assistive technology, a 72-hour event that took place in September 2015 organized by Tikkun Olam Makers (TOM) and United Cerebral Partners of the North Bay and sponsored by Google.

The goal of the Makeathon was to bring together people with intimate or first-hand knowledge of real-world challenges and those with the engineering and maker skills to provide solutions.

They also got to work directly with people with disabilities, who often can't afford assistive devices, or can’t find ones design to suit their individual needs.

Adapted from: http://bit.ly/2ghr4vf

More info: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1018055

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