Assistive Cutting Board for One Hand Use for Disabled, Elderly or Ill.

by Nelson_Yepez in Circuits > Assistive Tech

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Assistive Cutting Board for One Hand Use for Disabled, Elderly or Ill.

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A disabled, ill or elderly person can have a hard time with task as simple as pealing an apple or buttering bread. This assistive board for less than $10 can really make life easier for someone with a disability, either temporary like a broken arm or permanent like a missing limb.

THIS IS THE LINK FOR THE  VIDEO OF IT IN ACTION, CHECK IT OUT!!!

What You Are Going to Need.

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MATERIALS:
-Cutting board (I got mine at Target for $8, it’s a 20” by 15”, the bigger the better because     you have more working surface. Don’t get a wood one because the big ones are way to     heavy for a person that would be using only one arm)
- Knife (the size of your knife should be relative to the size of your board, my knife is 8”.           Make sure the cutting part of the knife is flat, not curve)
-Wood screws or nails 2” (I used wood screws because they hold the food better but nails   are easier to clean, you decide)
-An extra piece of plastic at least 6” by 6” and ½” thick ( I used an acrylic sheet, this is for       the supports and holders you can replace this if you have a better material)
-Anti slide soft pads/ sugru (sugru works best)
- Two machine screws and nuts 1" 
TOOLS:
-Dremel with cutting wheel and drilling bits (or any tool that you have that can do the same   job)
-Hot glue gun
-Screwdriver 

Cut and Glue the Bread Holders.

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From the extra piece of plastic with you Dremel cut two pieces of 3” by ½ “ these are the bread holders.
Then cut three 1” by 1” squares these make up the knife holder.
the two 3' by ½ “ are going to be glued to the top left corner of the table.

Put the Screws " Food Holders"

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In the bottom left corner mark three spots in a triangle shape and drill from the bottom the three wood screws.
The screws have about 1/2" separation between them imagine them fitting in the inside of an apple so you can see the distance they should have from each other. 

Glue and Install the Knife Holder.

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The three squares need to be glues as if you are making a cube.
Then drill a hole in the middle.
Now on the top right corner of the board drill a hole.
Put one of the 1" machine screws from the bottom in the hole and put the knife holder in that screw and tight the nut.
Don do it to tight the piece should be able to move from left to right.

Attach the Knife.

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Put the cutting part of the knife flat with the board.
Put the tip of the knife inside the cube.
Mark a spot to drill that will go thorough the walls of the cube and the the tip of the knife.
Drill and the hold the knife in place with the 1" machine screw.
Cut an extra piece of plastic of 1" long by 1/2" and make a groove on the middle, since the knife has free movement this will help to hold the knife on place.

Finish Up and Enjoy.

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Place the soft pads or the sugru in each corner in the bottom and you are ready to use.
my final model used sugru about the size of a nickel and it works way better that the soft pads and also wont slide