an Extra - Arm
In this unit Design and Engineering, we learned about levers, wedges, and tools. The project is asking us to create our own garden tool that is more accessible to senior citizens. The user is senior citizens and what makes them unique is that as people get older, gardening becomes a much more difficult task. Gardening becomes more difficult to them due to the decline in vision, failing manual dexterity, and difficulty stooping and lifting. Empathy relates to this project because if you want to design a tool that senior citizens can actually use, designing with empathy is the way to go. Empathy is when you put yourself in someone else's to try to understand how they are feeling.
I learned that high quality and useful gardening tools are often expensive. The gardener I interviewed told me that she "sees gardening as a relaxing and meditation activity." The tools that my gardener found ineffective were the ones that, over time, had grips that could hurt the user's hand. A tool that my gardener found effective is gardening gloves because they protect the user's hands during all gardening activities.
The trash grabber is a type of simple machine. It has 3 types of levers, 2 class one levers (the jaws/grabber and the handle), and altogether a class three lever. This is called a "linked lever." The trash grabber is also made up of a pulley system that allows the jaws/grabber to close when the user applies force on to the handle. I think the trash grabber would have 2 fulcrums, one where the handle meets the pole and one where the jaws/grabber meets the pole. The effort would be exerted on the jaws/grabber, and the load would be exerted on the handle.
My tool is used to grab and pick up materials like trash off of the floor. This tool is also used to pick up things like food or cans from high shelves. It does this when the pistol grip has a trigger lever for actuating the pull cord to cause the movable tube to slide toward the fixed tube, thereby causing the claws to move toward each other to hold the litter. As the trigger lever is let go, the movable tube is forced by a recovery spring to move back to its original position, thereby enabling the two claws to move away from each other to release the litter. I learned that most examples of my tool include an ergonomic handle, an aluminum pole, and rubberized grips. I believe my tool is better because the pole is created out of aluminum/magnesium which is not only strong but lightweight. The pole will also be in bright and noticeable colors that people with poor vision can easily find it. The pole will be extendable and retractable so that people using this product can reach things from far away and then bring it really close to them. By making it retractable it will also make it good for storing.
Here is the storyboard for the use of my tool:
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