Hello all!
This week, the team has taken the next major step in our hand crank design. They have upgraded from hardware store PVC pipes that were held together with nuts, bolts, hopes and prayers to a 3D printed, adjustable radius crank held together by push pins, hopes and more prayers!
Two iterations of the hand crank were rapidly prototyped. The early-week version used a wooden dowel as a temporary handle to validate geometry and structural integrity. By the end of the week, the second iteration fully incorporated a borrowed crank handle, allowing for more realistic testing and improved ergonomics.




Additionally, the team was very fortunate to observe a DMD patient perform a real benchmark test! This data will be useful later in determining how to tune the tricycle to feel natural to patients.
Special thanks to the patient (you know who you are :D), Dr. Tanja and Ruby.

What’s Next?
The electrical team is still waiting for new gears to arrive to lower the resistance floor of the hand crank. They have received the motor that will power the back of the tricycle and are very excited to get our hands on the VESC controller to start programming it! In the meantime, the electrical team is busy moving away from our perf board circuit to an actual PCB.
On the mechanical side, more iterations are being made to the hand crank. They will be busy designing the mounting mechanisms for the back of the tricycle. Additionally, they will be designing the final hand crank housing so they can move from the current wooden version, to one made of metal!
Anyways, stay tuned and we’ll report back next week!


















