3D Printed Wheelchair Hand Drive System

[Brian_Krassenstein]

Kate Reed and Nathaniel Tong created the Hand Drive wheelchair attachment, a hack which serves as an answer to the expensive, lever-powered wheelchairs they saw that retailed anywhere from $2,000 to $10,000. The pair say that, rather than take on the task of completely redesigning the wheelchair, they sought to make such lever-powered wheelchairs more accessible to everyday users. Their solution is almost entirely 3D printable - and costs only $40 to make. The Hand Drive wheelchair attachment can be adapted to any wheelchair and lets the user make a rowing motion to bring the larger muscle groups into play. You can read the whole story here: http://3dprint.com/91734/wheelchair-hand-drive/


Below is a look at the Hand Drive on a wheelchair:

[Link]

"To go faster"
Hey I'm no engineer but I'll throw some things at you. You've got a lever there so run with it. Gonna throw some images at you just to get your wheels turning. Where there's a will...
Unsure of the format here but here goes...


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gear#/..._animation.gif
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gear#/..._animation.gif

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gear#/..._animation.gif
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gear#/..._animation.gif

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Wg6S6qkSOx...pertz+Bike.jpg
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Wg6S6qkSOx...pertz+Bike.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contin...xRotRotVar.gif
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contin...xRotRotVar.gif

http://www.dtonline.org/areas/6/1/23/p.gif
http://www.dtonline.org/areas/6/1/23/p.gif

https://d2t1xqejof9utc.cloudfront.ne...92f/medium.gif
https://d2t1xqejof9utc.cloudfront.ne...92f/medium.gif

Apparently others have had the same idea but not necessarily 3D printed and when it comes to gearing and ways to make things go faster all that stuff has been thought through...it's just a matter of finding what works for what you're going for and applying it. Capitalize on what has been proven already...it's out there...tap those resources.

Look at these and maybe there's something you can employ:
https://www.google.com/search?tbm=is...ih=875#imgrc=_


Improve upon this:
http://www.mobilitycare.net.au/mobil...heelchair.html

Here's some questions to keep asking as you pursue this:
Can it be better? Is this the best it can be? Is it good enough? Does these choices give us and the user all of the advantages to be enjoyed? Are there shortcomings in our choices that another company could see as an opportunity to capitalize on?
Let the quality of your choices show that you care and not that you don't. To avoid shortsightedness develop the length of vision.
Cheers and kindest regards,
Link