Topic: A level Tech project

[Kea]

My son is struggling to come up with a project for A level tech as all his ideas so far have been turned down by the teacher. The previous teacher had been happy with the remote controlled boat.

I suggested something that I would like which is somewhere to store my bags of gardening compost so they can't be seen which doubles up as a seat and possibly has an arch of trellis to provide shade over the seat. Not a totally new idea but I asked him to design the storage area so i didn't need to lift the bags of compost which all the other's I've seen do. he immediately came up with a good idea.
He went to school with it sketched out and the teacher said it has to help someone with a disability!
And not another garden bench!

Surely designing it so it's easy to get stuff into helps someone with a disability.

He has 3 disabilities himself : height-he's 7ft; left handed...the world makes it a disability; Asperger's syndrome...which means he has to do something that interests him otherwise he won't do it. So i asked if he could design something that would help himself.

Anybody have a problem that needs solving because of a disability which might make a good project?

[manicscousers]

hi, kea,
when I was having problems carrying more than 1 pot(I use a stick and have mobility issues with my hands), I asked Ray to rig something up like a tea trolley, a box on the bottom for compost and a tray with sides on the top for plant pots, also had to be able to be pulled with 1 hand and not too heavy
he jigged around with a truck he had, screwed a plastic box on the bottom and a mesh plastic tray on the top,he used a handle from another truck for me, result, a rather rickety but very useful 'tea trolley' I can pull easily with 1 hand, means I don't get frustrated not being able to carry a trayful of plant pots  ;D
what things does he have problems using?, especially being left handed and 7'tall, something we all take for granted, hope he can find something  ;D

[Kea]

Doors are obviously a problem and the stairs every now and then he forgets to duck bashes himself on the head and comes crashing down. No tech project in that problem unfortunately.

Apparently the teacher is warming to the Garden arch storage seat. All the ones I've seen that have storage under them the seat lifts up and you would have to lift things into it. What i wanted was not to have to lift my bags of compost in but for the whole front and top of the seat to lift up and fold back....surely easy access is helpful for people with disabilities. Most are designed to store tools but I'm keen to stop my OH moaning about bags of compost in full view.

Obviously with being tall he needs longer bed, higher chair and desk but that's not a major design project that's just extending what is available.