D4E1 Chisel Tool
This chisel adaptation is meant to help individuals having various impairments. The device should improve the precision and should help reduce the force required when carving.
Our friend Mathijs offered to help us to create what we hope to be an improvement for some conditions. He suffers from spasms and weak motor skills. The design is developed in accordance with the needs of our user. Therefore, it should help those dealing with hand and arm motor impairments. Persons affected by spasms, cerebral palsy, or affections due to accidents, may benefit from using our assistive device.
We created a chisel that can offer more control and requires less force.
The chisel has some extra length over a normal one, and it has a soft push pad that will guide the chisel when in use.
The hip or the upper body is used to push the chisel and the two handles to control its movement.
The handles and the extra length can also be used as a lever when desired.
To build it, we tried to stick to accessible, standardized components.
We have used pipes and clamp fittings that come in many forms and sizes, so we advise you to buy whatever is accessible in your region of the world and as much as you can from your local shops.
Our tubes are 25 mm in diameter and 25 mm couplings respectively.
You can find here links to various sites selling similar products:
Display Rack Clamp Pipe Fittings on Amazon
Scaffolding tube couplings in the Netherlands
Use the scheme as guidance.
The chisels are press-fitted into the 25 mm pipe. The push cushion/pad has two layers of fabric to make it softer and more enjoyable for longer usage stints. Use plywood for the pad as a support for the fabric and round of the edges before upholstering
Use handlebar tape or any kind of soft grips to wrap on the handles.
Make it your own, longer or shorter, and don’t forget to tighten the screws before trying it out.
Have fun!
Check out the website of D4E1 for more assistive devices:
PS: there are already a ton of D4E1 designs on Instructables, so give it a search ;)
Make sure the chisel’s handle fits into the tube and press it into it
Add the 3-way joint and fixate it on the tube
Add the two shorter tubes
Add the two corner-joints
Add the handlebar tape, additionally but not necessarily you can tape off the ends with electrical tape
Screw the two components of the handle end-cap together
Press it into the handle tube (repeat last 3 steps for the second handle)
Add the handles
Make the plywood support and cover it with the 2 layers of fabric, additionally make the MDF finishing plate and predrill the holes for the screws
Fixate the MDF plate with screws
Fixate the end-flange to the MDF plate
Lastly, add the push cushion