Assistive drawing device design for Cerebral Palsy children

Abstract

Assistive drawing devices help Cerebral Palsy children to communicate and express themselves. This case study introduces the design of a unique assistive drawing device for a Cerebral Palsy child with upper limbs disability using the USERfit framework for user-centred design. The product design includes three parts: (1) hand-grip assistive device, (2) arm support assistive device and (3) moving drawing board. To further clarify the feasibility of applying this assistive drawing device design, a comparison experiment is performed for another Cerebral Palsy child. This study concludes that: (1) Hand grip, arm movements and body posture must be considered when designing assistive drawing devices for Cerebral Palsy children with upper extremity disabilities to improve drawing movement. (2) In terms of drawing agility, stroke, hand (or body) posture and stability, the assistive drawing device presented here can improve drawing range and drawing movement and is superior to currently used assistive drawing devices.