Thursday, March 8th
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Wheelchair Fabrication in
Developing Countries
Ralf
Hotchkiss
San Francisco State University
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Abstract: Ralf Hotchkiss will track
the designing of the Whirlwind Wheelchair from its beginning 30 years ago to
the present, and on into the future. From the first design breakthroughs of
barefoot blacksmiths to the high tech testing and manufacturing methods of
today, surprise breakthroughs in basic wheelchair design have come from the
backyard inventors of some 40 developing countries. These inventors, along with
several graduates of the Stanford d.school, form the Whirlwind Network of
wheelchair riders and designers. Their goal is not only to make wheelchairs
available in the poorest of countries; it is to radically improve the
durability and rough-ground mobility so that wheelchair riders can live and
work in environments that they can only dream of visiting today. Ralf will show
unfinished designs that open wide opportunities for new developments, and he
will make a plea for the innovative designers of Stanford to enter into one of
today's most fulfilling areas of invention and international development
work.
Biosketch: Ralf Hotchkiss is an
inventor and the lead designer of the Whirlwind Wheelchair. His project,
Whirlwind Wheelchair International, is a project of San Francisco State
University. Ralf teaches a class, Engineering 620: Wheelchair Design and
Construction, in which students can build a complete wheelchair in a Third
World appropriate shop. Whirlwind Wheelchair International's mission is "to
make it possible for every person in the developing world who needs a
wheelchair to obtain one that will lead to maximum personal independence and
integration into society". Ralf is a graduate of Oberlin College and a 1989
MacArthur Foundation Fellow.
- Contact information:
- Ralf Hotchkiss
- 6505 Farallon Way
- Oakland, CA 94611
- 415/338-1290
- whirlwind -at-
sfsu.edu
- Whirlwind Wheelchair
International
- San Francisco State University
- 1600 Holloway Ave.
- San Francisco
CA 94132
- Lecture Material:
- Pre-lecture
slides - 917 Kb pdf file
- Slides -
1.13 Mb pdf file
- Audio -
1:10:20 - 16.1 Mb mp3 file
- Links:
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