View Full Version : Pictures of home made frame, hoist, and motor
angel7
10-12-2002, 06:34 PM
As promised attached are pictures of the lift my fiance made for supported gait training. The harness you see attached is not the one that I will ultimately use. The structure is 8 ft tall and was made in 2 pieces that was bolted together in the middle. A frame was welded to the top to correspond with the screws to secure the motor. If you have any questions please ask them here so I can get Wayne to post the answers.
Deb
angel7
10-12-2002, 06:39 PM
Another view
angel7
10-12-2002, 06:46 PM
One more view. Wayne put the sheet behind the lift so you could see it better.
Deb
rbyrd49100
10-12-2002, 06:54 PM
Deb,
this looks great. I may be asking a lot more questions about your set-up. Maybe you can post some pics of you doing the workouts to give us an idea of how it works etc.
Oh, and when you are totally recovered, just think of some of the other uses you guys could have for it. :> )
Russ Byrd
angel7
10-12-2002, 06:58 PM
2" sch. 40 black pipe
Joints welded except center which was bolted top to bottom for transportation
Frame size 5' wide, 6' long, 8' high
Motor mount is a 6" channel welded to the top of the frame
Hoist is a Chicago electric hoist, 440 pd. capacity, 110 volt AC w/a drop pendant control
The harness in the picture is from Maine anti-gravity.
Sue Pendleton
10-12-2002, 07:00 PM
Wow! Talented guy you have there Debbie! Is the harness hooked up while you are sitting in your chair?
PS...I see kinky sex in your future. http://sci.rutgers.edu/forum/images/smilies/wink.gif
Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, "I will try again tomorrow."
angel7
10-12-2002, 07:02 PM
Thanks Russ. Wayne and I have plans for the hoist once I'm walking lol. I will post a picture of me on the ellipitical trainer and one on the treadmill. I am awaiting my new harness.
Deb
angel7
10-12-2002, 07:29 PM
Yeah I'm going to keep him Sue. The way it worked before the harness started hurting was as follows. I'd roll outside in my wheelchair and lay it back. My PT would slide the harness underneath me and I would back into the franme. We would hook the harness to the motor and raise me up off the ground. The excercise eqipment would be rolled underneath me and I was lowered until about 50% of my weight was on my legs.
Deb
rosebud
10-12-2002, 08:40 PM
Debbie,
Where did you get the harness?
sci-co-pilot
10-13-2002, 02:02 PM
Originally posted by Debbie7:
Another view
What type of harness do you recommened.
Chris Chappell
10-13-2002, 02:19 PM
Debbie, awesome job!
I'll post pictures of mine as soon as its complete, as well.
Amazing what a little creativity and mechanical skill can do. Nice job Wayne.
Btw, your setup, specifically the harness, is not that different from Project Walk.
Onward and Upward!
Bruno
10-14-2002, 07:19 AM
Can you guys point me out to that Maine website?
thanks,
Bruno
dahliasinbloom
10-14-2002, 09:30 AM
Between your posts and Chris' post, I've started a nice little file on a home therapy systems.
Hey, if anyone out there lives near Sonora, CA and would like to get in touch, I'd love to buddy up with someone in this area attempting a similar system. E-mail me.
Russ: what could you possibly be thinking of? ...ok, I'll use my imagination.
why are the pictres not showing up?
EM
angel7
10-14-2002, 01:58 PM
Everyone,
I bought my harness from Maine Anti-Gravity Systems for $375. The contact name is Charlie at 207-775-3800. However, this one hurt me under my armpits. You may have better luck. I'm ordering a different one this week. I'll let you know how it works by posting a reply under this thread.
Deb
angel7
10-14-2002, 02:08 PM
Thanks Chris. Can't wait to look at your creations.
Deb
angel7
10-14-2002, 02:51 PM
EM,
I don't why they aren't showing up. Email me directly and I'll send you the pictures directly.
Deb
Arturo
10-14-2002, 03:54 PM
I have used several harnesses in the two last years. I would be happy to donate a Maine Anti-Gravity System harness from Biodex or Litegait harness to a member on Carecure.
1. The Litegait harness is size large and has never been used.
2. The Maine Anti-Gravity System harness from biodex is also a size large and has been used once.
I recommend buying a higher quality harness if your rehabilitation budget can afford it.
The harness is utterly critical during "Laufband" therapy. I would recommend the harness that was developed and designed by Dr A.Wernig MD and S.Müller Ph.T. at the Klinikum Karlsruhe-Langensteinbach, Germany.
If your budget allows a higher quality harness, you might want to check out the following web sites. Brigitte Wernig originally redesigned the harnesses for Woodway treadmills with their Lokomat. You can go throw Woodway altogether with there Lokomat and pay double for the harness or go directly to the manufacture for a discount. Without harness...no locomotion.
www.bonmed.com (http://www.bonmed.com-) Directly to the manufacture.
http://www.meb.uni-bonn.de/wernig/harness.htm
http://graulab.tamu.edu/NewsItems/NY-Times.Article.html
http://www.hocoma.ch/engl/lokomat_movie.html
[This message was edited by Arturo on Oct 14, 2002 at 07:53 PM.]
dahliasinbloom
10-14-2002, 05:47 PM
I would be interested in one of the harnesses. Are either still available? My e-mail is edwards@inreach.com. Thanks, Jan
Nice pictures of your harness, hoist and framing setup!
This is similar to what I've been using. Mine is made partly from supplies we had on hand, and partly from stuff we bought. I use a manual hoist rather than a winch. The hoist is connected with climbing rope via pulleys to two carabiners. These in turn connect to D-rings on my harness. The pulleys and hoist are mounted to the framework in a passageway in my house. My husband has no problem hoisting me up, but if a helper is not strong enough to do that for someone, more pulleys could be added to reduce the lifting force. He slides the treadmill under me, then lets me down.
When I first started walking on the treadmill, I used a harness I made myself to help support my weight. I'm a parachute rigger, so I had much of the material on hand. The rest I ordered. It's standard material and hardware used in skydiving harnesses.
What we discovered in therapy (it was a learning experience for the PTs and me together) was that the adjustment of the harness was critical in order to aid in walking. The Litegait has four separate adjustments, one for each of the vertical supports - front and back, left and right. It was important that the hips, pelvis and butt were properly supported for the correct posture for walking, that I wasn't just hanging in the harness. This meant that the harness had to be pretty tight, which made it uncomfortable to sit in. We found it was easiest to put on loosely while I was lying on a mat, then tightening the adjustments after I was standing.
I no longer use the homemade harness, since I now can walk on the treadmill supporting my own weight, but I still use a harness (this one is a skydiving rig), which I can put on in my chair, to get hoisted up so my husband can slide the treadmill under me. I loosen the harness after he lets me down.
We had some of the materials, but even if someone had to buy everything, it could probably be done for under $100, plus a treadmill & harness. It's a setup that works ok for us. Also, if the cost of some of the harnesses seems prohibitive, you might want to consider finding a parachute rigger. They know a lot about harnesses and where to get supplies, plus they're usually equipped to make stuff like this. It's worth asking. Debbie, maybe a rigger could look at the problem you have with the fit on your original harness and adjust it for you.
Anyway, it's interesting that the solutions we each came up with are similar.
angel7
10-20-2002, 10:41 AM
SueB,
Your set up sounds really neat. Arturo is going to send me a CD on how to properly fit the harness. Thanks for the tips. How long did it take you to walk unassisted>?
Deb
I first used the Litegait in April, as a "guinea pig" to demo the newly-acquired equipment for a PT I knew at a seminar she was giving. That's when I started PT twice a week again. My therapist had me mostly walking first with parallel bars, then with a walker. I used the Litegait only a half-dozen times. Then, one day she decided to try me on the treadmill with no harness, and I did ok! That was one of my last therapy sessions, in July. That's when my husband and I started doing it at home. It's been 3 months since I started, where I was doing about 50 feet at a time before resting, at about .3 or .4 mph. Now I do over 200 ft at a time at about 1 mph. Yesterday was my record so far - 1800 ft for the day! We were pretty excited.
I also alternate walking on the treadmill with a walker. It's a different challenge for me, and I think the change is good.
I do a LOT of stretching before I walk, though. Sitting in these chairs all the time doesn't do any of our muscles any good that we're not using for sitting - and that's just about all the ones we need for walking.
Chris Chappell
11-14-2002, 11:17 AM
Bumping this up by request.
Onward and Upward!
Chris Chappell
05-18-2003, 02:55 PM
bump, Debbie rocks
1uncleED
05-22-2003, 01:32 AM
I have been using an unweighting apparatus developed by Don Smith called the "I Beam Walking Machine". This is very easy to use and replaces suspended treadmill training because it can be positioned above parallel bars or an eliptical trainer. It can be built to any length, 10, 20, 30ft. When positioned over parallel bars twenty feet in length it gives you forty feet of walking round trip. It swivels so that up and back on the parallel bars can be done in as many repetitons as you desire. It also can facilitate more than one motor and trolley making it dual use at one time. This is great for P.T. clinics or rehab centers. It can also be down sized for home use. It's worth checking out. www.Ibeamwalkingmachine.com (http://www.Ibeamwalkingmachine.com)
Never take no for an answer and never give up.
edushreya
06-01-2005, 04:41 PM
Hi Deb,
I am a student working on designing an inexpensive harness for people with SCI and stroke undergoing rehabilitation at home. I would like to know your experience with the home-built harness- if you had any problems or any special advantages using it. I have a lot more questions for you, and if you could please help me out with this, my e-mail address is niki1425@rediffmail.com
Thanks http://sci.rutgers.edu/forum/images/smilies/smile.gif
~Shreya