Desenvolvimento de projeto e protótipo de cadeira postural para criança com tetraplegia

Abstract

The impairment of certain muscle groups and sensory - motor changes are some of the characteristics presented by children with cerebral palsy, making it necessary to use supine stander or standing wheelchair to aid in orthostatism. Currently, there is some equipment that favors these aspects, but the cost is still quite high, making them inaccessible to a large portion of the population. In order to offer a quality alternative with reduced cost, a posture chair was designed in UTFPR that allows alternating between sitting and orthostatic position. For this, a user-centered design methodology was used. After an evaluation of similar equipment related to the proposed theme, as well as commercial components available in the market, three concepts were developed for the work. From these concepts, three prototypes were elaborated. Moreover, based on mechanical tests performed by other authors, it was guaranteed that the raw material is suitable for the manufacture of the tubular structure of the postural chair. The PVC was presented as a material with good mechanical resistance in the tests of flexion and impact. In order to ensure that the postural chair does not have damage during use, a load of 90 kg was applied to the structure of the device, and it behaved properly. The posture chair proved to be an excellent option for the products available in the market, since it serves children up to 1.36 meters and 25 kg, as well as having a cost 96.32% lower than a standing wheelchair chair, 81% smaller than a conventional posture chair and 74% smaller than a supine stander.