UNIVERSAL DRYER
 

For
my Universal Design invention, I decided to work with an appliance that my mom
in particular has a very difficult time using. Since she has back problems,
knee problems and arthritis, she has a hard time lifting objects, bending over
and using her fingers. One appliance that she struggles with every week is the
drying machine. Since it is so low to the ground, she has to bend down to reach
inside the machine. This hurts her back and knees. In addition, most machines
are extremely deep and in order to get all the dry laundry out, you need to
bend down and reach in grabbing and reaching for those annoying socks that get
stuck in the back. Lastly, the knobs are not that hard to turn, but they are
uncomfortable for her fingers.

The
Universally Designed dryer (or washer) that I came up with is designed to help
people empty it easily and without struggle. I started with the height of the
dryer. A lot of the time dryers are way too low to the ground and people have
to bend down. The dryer would be approximately 110 cm high. This is a medium
height in case there is a wheelchair bound person using the dryer. The front
window of the dryer would be located at the top half of the appliance. With
everything located close to the top and a bit higher up, this would be easier
for people to reach and not strain their backs.

Next,
just talking about the top of the dryer, there would be a ledge around the back
and sides of the appliance. If you wanted to place detergent or towels on top,
they would be sure not to fall off. (Dryers can be shaky!) In addition, there
would be a LCD screen that tilts to your desired height that displays the dryer
settings. Below the LCD screen would be sensor touch buttons that are also
color coated and lighted for people with bad eye sight or arthritis.

Going
onto the body of the appliance, the front window of the dryer would be the main
part where you put the wet clothes in and take the dry clothes out. To open it,
there would be a simple pressure push opening. You would simply press the glass
and it would come out like a sliding drawer automatically. There would also be
a way to lock it while it is drying clothes so that it doesn’t open
unexpectedly. After you press the glass and the drawer slides out, you have some
options from that point on. By looking at the circled number diagram:

1. This is just the sliding drawer that
   comes out of the body of the appliance when you push the glass.
2. Next is the right pull out panel
   that when you pull it, it releases the bottom of the basket and lets the
   laundry fall out into another basket underneath. (if you were in a
   wheelchair you could hold a basket on your lap and drop the clothes into
   the basket by pulling the panel.
3. This is the right pull out panel
   that when you pull it, it acts as a platform to rest another basket on.
   (also see no.5)
4. This is the basket drawer that comes
   out of the main drawer attached to the body of the dryer. So you could
   easily just pull that basket out with your laundry and take it wherever.
5. This is the hinged side where you
   can pull up the inner basket and tip it over so that the clothes fall into
   the basket that is resting on the platform (no.3) (Now you do not need to
   ever bend over and hurt your back)
6. This is the push glass

This
design would solve the problem of someone with back problems, knee problems,
arthritis, and would be easy to use for all others. It has many options in
order to get your clothes out of the dryer without having to reach inside a
deep bin. Instead you have the option of releasing the clothes from the bottom,
top, side or just taking the basket out altogether. Easy to use with color
coated lighted buttons and a tilted screen. No more bending over, no more reaching
in, no more turning knobs.