Arthritis Research UK hunts for product design ideas to help people living with arthritis

Arthritis Research UK and Design Council Spark are making a final call for innovative design ideas, which would be life altering for people with arthritis. Applications close at midday on 21st November 2017.The 2017 winner, Geoff Rolandsen, won with the Workey design. Workey helps people with arthritis open doors with ease. He was inspired after he discovered that his father, who lives with arthritis, struggled to use certain door keys. Geoff started sketching some ideas which would help his dad, and the original Workey assistive device was born. Keys slide into it and it creates a larger and more ergonomic surface area for the user to turn. It can be kept attached to a keyring or even just left on a key without becoming too big to slip into a pocket or a bag.“It seems like a small thing, but an inability to use keys properly is a real problem,” explains Geoff.“One awkward situation because of it, and people can lose confidence for months or even years. It can mean a loss of independence.”By entering Arthritis Research UK’s category in Design Council Spark, Geoff was able to progress take his product beyond the initial design stage, as Spark provided him with funding and monthly workshops with mentors and design experts. Four months on from completion of the programme the Workey is very close to being re-released as a fully-fledged commercial product.Charlotte Guiver, director at Arthritis Research UK said:“We hear time and time again from ...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news