Automatic Cord Retractor for Portable Ventilators
By Riggs, David M.; NSF 2005 Engineering Senior Design Projects to Aid Persons With Disabilities, pp. 180-181Publication Date: 2005
Description of a device which facilitates plugging in a portable ventilator and retracts and stores its cords. Developed at the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department of The State University of New York at Buffalo, the design of the device was based on the conversion of the two cords coming out of the ventilator into one cable that is on an automatic cord retractor. A 14 AWG 5-wire cable was made for the device. The cable enters from the top of the retractor to an electrode which is in contact with copper rings attached to a second cable. Four perfectly circular, precisely mounted copper rings guarantee power flow. Di-electric grease was applied to the rings to lower the friction between the electrode and the rings. The storage space for the cords consists of a T-bracket that the cords wrap around, mounted on an aluminum base which can in turn be mounted onto the back of the ventilator. Possible improvements to the design of the device are discussed. Production cost was $70.
Published by: Creative Learning Press, Inc. (Website:http://www.creativelearningpress.com)
Link to text: http://nsf-pad.bme.uconn.edu/2005/Buffalo.pdf
ISBN: 1-931280-03-7
