Wednesday, December 30, 2009

A Pro Designer Discusses The 7 Principles of Universal Design & Barrier Free and Assistive Technology | How To Grow, Profit & Organize Your Business

Q: Why is Universal Design necessary?

Product Design is at the intersection of technology, design, and human factors. When all these areas coalesce we can innovate and create usable products to improve the lives of users.

Generally designers consider users, but it is a natural tendency to think of people like oneself, which usually means healthy, young and typically developing. The human population is not typical, however.

"The human population is not typical, however."

That is revolutionary.

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Sunday, December 27, 2009

American v. British health care - Holy Kaw!

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Monday, December 21, 2009

Access Tubs Walk-In Bathing Products

Access Tubs Walk-In Bathing Products: "Today, walk-in bath tubs have become the ultimate solution to independent bathing for seniors, and the handicappedand disabled all over the world. Just choose between our US-made products and experience safe, luxurious and comfortable bathing. Elderly, handicapped and people with limited mobility choose Access Tubs for its quality-made products. Accesstubs.com is the vendor for Costco US and Canada stores. Our elderly-care and handicap baths can be customized to better suit your needs"

Friday, December 18, 2009

“Mobility Works Wins Exclusive US Manufacturing and Distribution Rights for the Martin Conquest wheelchair accessible motorcycle.” — IMED Mobility Blog

“Mobility Works Wins Exclusive US Manufacturing and Distribution Rights for the Martin Conquest wheelchair accessible motorcycle.”

by Bob on December 18th, 2009

Mobility Works has today announced they have won exclusive US manufacturing and distribution rights to the innovative Martin Conquest handicap accessible motorcycle.

Akron, Ohio December 14th, 2009 – Mobility Works has announced they will be the exclusive US distributor and manufacturer for the Martin Conquest wheelchair accessible motorcycle.  Martin Conquest chose Mobility Works as its strategic partner in the US and manufacturing of the motorcycle will be centered in Akron, Ohio.

Bill Koeblitz,one of the  founders of Mobility Works, stated, “We are honored to be chosen to introduce the first production wheelchair accessible motorcycle to our physically challenged community here in the United States.”

The Power of the Open Road

The Conquest Motorcycle

After an exhaustive search, Mobility Works was chosen by Martin Conquest, based on their longstanding commitment to the physically challenged community.  According to Mark Allen Roberts, who will head up Mobility Conquest, “We look forward to helping physically challenged members of our community reconnect with their passion for riding motorcycles.  Statistically, 4% of thel population ride motorcycles, and we are excited to provide our Conquest trike to help consumers with physical challenges from the waist down enjoy the ride again.”

With more than 300 inquiries concerning the Martin Conquest in the past three months alone, the demand is expected to be quite high for this wheelchair accessible motorbike.

For consumers in wheelchairs, the dream of riding a motorcycle has long been a thing of fantasy.  The few motorcycles that were produced were custom affairs, available only to those with connections or sufficient funding to have such a vehicle commissioned.

Mobility Conquest, founded to manufacture and distribute these motorcycles in the US, offers access to some of the most powerful, high-performance road machines anywhere, designed by and for consumers in wheelchairs.

The heart of the vehicle is the front end and engine of a BMW R 1170.  At a glance, the bike offers a 0-60 speed of just 7.6 seconds (with wheelchair adaptation), 15-second quarter mile time and a top speed of 105 mph.  Maximum output is 109 bph, thanks to the 1170cc engine.

However, the real story is the adaptive chassis.  Drivers will board the bike via a remote controlled rising and lowering ramp at the rear.  The chassis provides tremendous stability, as well (transforming the bike into a trike).  The Conquest also features six forward gears, full reverse and an electronic parking brake.

Safety features for drivers include a wheelchair locking system, which features a push button release, as well as hydraulic front and rear racing disc brakes, operated from a single lever.  The clutch is thumb-controlled, thanks to a 2-button Klicktronic system for semi-automatic operation.  The Martin Conquest is also in compliance with all US Federal laws and guidelines for handicap accessible vehicles.

Finally, disabled persons can have the amazing freedom offered only by a motorcycle – the freedom to feel the wind in their hair, as the bike roars down the pavement, all without leaving their wheelchair behind.

To find out more about purchasing the Martin Conquest, or how this wheelchair accessible motorcycle can be of use to you, visit the company at http://www.MobilityConquest.com.

About Mobility Conquest: Mobility Conquest was founded by Bill Koeblitz and his partner Taylor Clark of Mobility Works, in partnership with Martin Conquest of the UK.  Mobility Conquest will be the only authorized manufacturers and distributors of this powerful, wheelchair accessible motorcycle.

Article submitted by: IMED Consulting LLC.

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Thursday, December 17, 2009

Sledge hockey: Skating circles around the misconceptions - Niagara Falls Review - Ontario, CA

Imagine playing a full-contact, ultra-competitive, body-sacrificing 60 minutes of hockey. No problem, you say, you do it or know those who play every night of the week.

Now imagine doing without the use of your legs.

Welcome to the world of sledge hockey, specifically the Niagara Thunderblades brand of the sport.

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Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Army Exoskeleton Helps People with Disabilities - Disaboom

Exoskeletons for People with Disabilities
In the consumer market, things move a bit quicker. Two exoskeletons are about to hit the proverbial street. Neither will have the repulsor rays or flight capability of the comic book character Ironman; however, both will give their wearer strength and endurance benefits that will help in the performance of daily tasks. Moreover, both should help people with mobility impairments lead better lives.

Steve Jacobsen and the engineers at Raytheon Sarcos Incorporated have developed the XOS exoskeleton. The machine is in many ways more complex than the human body. We use electrical impulses, muscles, ligaments, tendons, and joints to move. The XOS has to mimic those in a way that will not put excessive strain on the relatively fragile human user.

Sensors attached to the user's body send electrical signals to a central computer to detect force of movement. Much like our brain, the computer controls impulses sent to a series of valves, actuators, cables and joints to perform the actual movement. The sensors monitor the user's movements at a rate of thousands of times per second, then amplify his strength as needed to perform a given task.

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Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Comic loses wheelchair on stage, but not his sense of humor | kens5.com | Home

He's known as America's sit-down comic. Chris Fonseca has cerebral palsy and depends on a wheelchair to get around.

Recently, he was headlining a show downtown at The Enchilada Warehouse when one of his worst nightmares came true.

As he was being helped on stage, the crowd heard a loud noise. It was the back support beam breaking off his wheelchair. Fonseca fell to the ground.

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Monday, December 14, 2009

Coaxing injured nerve fibers to regenerate by disabling 'brakes' in the system

Adding to a previous study published in Science last year, research led by Zhigang He, PhD, of the F.M. Kirby Neurobiology Center at Children's Hospital Boston provides further evidence that axon regeneration is limited by a reduced or lost responsiveness to injury-induced growth factors -- and also suggests some ways of overcoming the problem to help people recover from brain or spinal cord injury.

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In Energy Innovation, Everything New Is Old Again - WSJ.com

Technology often stands on the shoulders of prior discovery. In the energy field in particular, there are precious few killer apps -- ideas that supersede earlier methods. New energy technologies tend to develop slowly and spread at a snail's pace. It takes time and money to accomplish small improvements, and even more of both to spread those improvements across the energy system.

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Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Wal-Mart and Disability Outreach - DisaboomJobs

Residents of Summerville, Ga., sometimes shop at the local Wal-Mart twice in one day, but it’s not because they forgot anything the first time. They just want a second chance to visit Finn, the black Labrador retriever service dog who works at the store with owner Spann Cordle.

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