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Engineering solutions to aid the quest for medals
Posted on 29/12/08
Engineering solutions to aid the quest for medals
Paralympic frames developed by experts at Loughborough University have already been used by one gold medal-winning athlete and could benefit even more over the next four years.
A team of engineers at the Universitys Sports Technology Institute were set the challenge of developing new frames for four Beijing-bound Paralympic athletes by UK Sports Research and Innovation programme. Led by Steve Carr, the team took on the task and had just a few weeks to create frames that were light weight and easy to use.
As part of the design process Steve, and his colleagues Andrew Hallam and Simon Neal, met with each athlete to discuss their individual needs and any issues they had with their existing frames. Using this information they were able to create personalised frames designed to boost performance.
The team worked with discuss and shot putters Danny West and Gemma Prescott, archer Danielle Brown and thrower Kieron Murphy. Danielle won gold in Beijing and set a new world record, with Kieron achieving a personal best.
Speaking about the project Steve said: With each person having completely unique requirements, each separate project brought with it different problems and solutions. The existing frames were either too heavy, flimsy, not transportable, or actually impeded the athletes performance.
With the archer frame for Danielle Brown, for example, we redesigned it to address the specific concerns she had about the equipment. Our modifications ensured there was consistent positioning of the lower limbs and that the total load was spread over a greater area, making maximum use of the permitted space. The redesign eliminated the sinking of the frame on soft ground and the wider base made it much more stable on indoor shoots. The incorporation of an alignment and locking system also made the initial set up of the frame accurate and consistent.
All of these alterations gave Danielle a much more stable platform than she had previously been used to and we were rewarded with immediate results as she shot a personal best when using the frame for the first time.
Danielle said she was delighted with her new equipment. She added: I am extremely grateful to the Universitys Sports Technology Institute as my shooting has improved so much since getting my new stool.
Research and Innovation Consultant at UK Sport, Dr Scott Drawer said: The team at Loughborough have made a real performance impact here. We are confident the development of this over the next four years can really help advance knowledge of and insight into performance in disability sports.
Steve and his team are continuing to look at frames and accessories for Paralympic athletes, and hope their work will benefit even more athletes in the future.
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