Perspectives is the newsletter of the Stanford course,
Perspectives in Assistive Technology.

Wheelchair Fabrication in Developing Countries

This issue announces the remaining class sessions.

Course News

Course Statistics - Forty-three students have enrolled in the course, four students are auditing, ten vendors plan to participate in the Virtual Assistive Technology Faire, and twenty-six students have chosen to work on nineteen projects, ten suggested by six community members.

Next class session - Thursday, March 11th at 4:30pm PST via Zoom

Abstract: Ralf Hotchkiss will track the design of the Whirlwind Wheelchair from its beginning thirty 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 forty 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 Whirlwind Wheelchair International, a non-profit company located in Berkeley. Its 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". At SFSU, he taught "Wheelchair Design and Construction", a course in which students built a complete wheelchair in a Third World appropriate shop. Ralf is a graduate of Oberlin College (Physics) and a 1989 MacArthur Foundation Fellow.

Zoom Attendance

This class session will not be open to community attendance - This decision has been made due to the loss of audio quality during the first class session - mostly likely due to the large number of attendees and a poor WiFi connection. For these reasons, I must restrict Zoom attendance to enrolled students. Individuals affiliated with Stanford can request to be invited to the class session. However, I will provide the link to this recorded video session to anyone who requests it.

Remaining class sessions:

• Tuesday, March 16th - End-of-Term Student Project Presentations
• Thursday, March 18th - End-of-Term Student Project Presentations

Other

Email questions, comments, or suggestions - Please email me if you have general questions, comments, corncerns, or suggestions regarding the course. Thank you again for your interest.

Dave