Study on buckling load of paper materials for development of hands-free crutches

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to develop a new hands-free crutch made from paper. Hands-free crutches are useful for improving the quality of life of people with lower limb injuries, but they must be expensive when optimized to the body dimensions of the injured person. We therefore focused on paper as a recyclable and easy-to-process material. Then we conducted buckling load tests on a square pillar made from paperboard and a commercially available paper tube. As a result, the buckling load test of the paperboard quadrangle columns confirmed that the use of the manufactured quadrangle columns as an apparatus material was inappropriate due to the labor required to produce the quadrangle columns and the instability of their strength. However, we confirmed that commercially available paper tubes have sufficient strength. Since we were able to confirm the strength of the paper tubes through buckling load tests, we thought that by conducting bending load tests and strain measurement tests on the paper tubes, we could better guarantee the strength of the material and use the paper tubes as a material for the apparatus.