Limitations and Next Steps
While the Shirt Horn design meets all of the requirements of the client and user, the design has
limitations which could be rectified in the future. In addition, because the device to aid in
undressing was never built, there are limitations that could exist in the feasibility of that design.
Shirt Horn
Range of Testing
No additional user testing was conducted with Elsa after the prototype was built; ideally, further
testing should have been performed with Elsa and the design should have been continually
updated as more tests were performed. Because Elsa was the primary user for this project, the
design and the testing was tailored for her. Ideally, testing would also have been performed with
secondary users (other people with arthrogryposis).
During user testing, the only shirt available was an oversized tshirt (see Appendix E: User
Testing Summary). Further user testing should be performed with a shirt of the size that Elsa
wears on a regular basis to assess how the device functions with a smaller shirt.
Adjustability
While adjustability was not a key requirement of the project, the device should ideally be able to
adapt to changes in her height, shirt size, and/or the size of her wheelchair. As the device was
designed and constructed with a standardsize door in mind, the Shirt Horn could also be
improved to maintain a constant displacement from the floor. More research on materials and
adjustability should be done in order to find potential solutions, and further performance testing
should be conducted to assess these solutions.
Portability and Installation
The final prototype is irregularly shaped and exceeds 50” in height. As a result, the device can be
difficult to properly fit over a door. Furthermore, its size means that the device can be difficult to
move individually and difficult to carry around. A possibility considered to improve portability
and improve the ease of installation would be to split the assembly into interlocking pieces which
could be easily fit together without sacrificing the strength of the assembly.
Undressing Device
No further progress on the undressing device was made after initial user testing. While certain
aspects of the design worked well during user testing (see Appendix E: User Testing Summary),
there was room for improvement in other aspects of the design which could have been addressed
with further user and performance testing. As construction of the device was never attempted, the
15