Summary of the failure maximum compressive loads.

Although there has been considerable progress in distributed manufacturing of open-source designs for mobility aids, there is a notable lack of affordable, open-source crutches. Crutches are a vital tool for many individuals with mobility impairments, yet the high costs limit accessibility. Even more, they are in short supply in regions undergoing conflict. The goal of this study is to address this need by leveraging the principles of free and open-source hardware and the capabilities of digital distributed manufacturing to create a low-cost, functional crutch that can be easily produced and customized locally using inexpensive desktop 3D printers. All the design files are open-source, and the design process incorporated load-bearing tests using a hydraulic actuator under static loading conditions to meet the ISO 11334-1:2007 standard for walking aids. The open-source forearm crutch developed in this study not only surpasses the requirements of the ISO method for load capacity (1,516.3 ± 169.9 N, which is 51.6% percent above needs), weighs a fraction of comparable commercial systems (0.612 kg or 27% of proprietary devices), and is customizable, but also offers a highly cost-effective solution; costing CAD $36 in material, which is less than all equivalent crutches on the open market. If recycled plastic is used, the material cost of the crutch could be further reduced to under CAD $13, making it much more accessible.

尽管移动辅助设备开源设计的分布式制造领域已取得长足进展，但目前仍显著缺乏兼具经济性与开源属性的拐杖产品。拐杖是诸多行动障碍人士不可或缺的辅助工具，然而高昂的成本限制了其可及性，在冲突地区更是供不应求。本研究旨在填补这一需求缺口，依托自由开源硬件（free and open-source hardware）的理念与数字化分布式制造能力，研发一款低成本、实用型拐杖，可通过廉价桌面级3D打印机在本地轻松完成生产与定制。所有设计文件均为开源形式，设计过程中采用液压作动器（hydraulic actuator）在静态加载工况下开展承重测试，以满足ISO 11334-1:2007行走辅助器具标准。本研究开发的开源前臂拐杖（forearm crutch），其承重能力远超ISO标准要求（1516.3±169.9牛，较标准需求高出51.6%），重量仅为同类商用产品的极小部分（0.612千克，仅为专有设备的27%），且支持定制化，同时具备极高的性价比：材料成本仅需36加拿大元（CAD），低于公开市场上所有同类拐杖；若采用回收塑料作为原料，该拐杖的材料成本可进一步降至13加拿大元以下，大幅提升其可及性。