再生塑料制作的低成本假肢
Project Circleg uses recycled plastic to build low-cost prosthetics in Kenya

由专筑网李韧，邢子编译

两名苏黎世毕业生设计了一种低成本的假肢，这些假肢由可回收的废弃塑料制作而成，在肯尼亚的当地工厂进行加工制作。

Circleg项目由苏黎世艺术大学工业设计本科生Fabian Engel 与Simon Oschwald于2018年3月共同设计。

这两位设计师希望通过设计的方式来帮助那些因交通事故、医疗条件缺乏、战争而受伤的残障人士，这类人群在发展中国家数量庞大。

Two Zurich-based graduates have created a low cost lower-limb prosthetic made of recycled plastic waste that is collected and processed in local factories in Kenya.
Project Circleg was founded by industrial design undergraduates Fabian Engel and Simon Oschwald at Zurich University of the Arts in March 2018 as a degree project.
The two designers wanted to find a way to help the millions of people in less developed countries who need a prosthesis because of traffic accidents, poor medical care or armed conflict.



目前市面上的假肢不具有特定的功能，同时价格也偏高。

一些残障人士也因为某些原因而必须留在家中，亦或是依赖于他人的帮助。

Most prosthetic limbs that are currently available tend to be lacking in functionality or are unaffordable to many who need them.
Without access to them, many individuals are confined to their homes, are dependent on others for help and live fairly excluded lives.



Oschwald与Engel不仅考虑到残障人士对于假肢的需求，同样还考虑了发展中国家的塑料污染问题，因为在这些国家，由于再生系统的不完善，塑料污染问题较为严峻。

Engel说道：“我们是工业设计师，我们认为废弃塑料也是珍贵的资源，因此我们构思了这个方案，将废弃塑料和低成本假肢相结合。”

Alongside this need for prosthetic limbs, Oschwald and Engel wanted to address the issue of plastic pollution in less developed countries, where it is particularly high due to lack of recycling resources.
"As industrial designers, we see plastic waste as a valuable resource for meaningful products. So we came up with the idea to combine the topics of plastic pollution with the high demand for low-cost prosthetics in developing countries," said Engel.



他们通过使用废弃塑料来完成这个项目，从而降低项目成本，并且使用的塑料都来自当地。他们在这种塑料中添加了玻璃纤维，从而提高其稳定性。

Oschwald与Engel在项目初始阶段去了肯尼亚，研究了当地的循环过程和潜在客户的生活方式。

设计师说：“这种设计方式以使用者为中心，这让我们必须了解使用者的真实需求，并且把这种需求和设计过程结合在一起，然后我们便构思了适合肯尼亚社会背景的方案。”

Circleg项目的生产以肯尼亚等国家现有的制造能力为基础，在当地的生产与制造过程也能够促进国民的就业机会与收入。

Engel说：“通过Circleg项目，我们希望能够建立当地的价值链，当地的回收、生产、装配行业能够创造更多的就业机会，提升当地家庭的生活水平。”

They chose to use this post-consumer plastic to fabricate the Circleg, reducing the material cost by half and utilising locally available plastic waste for production. The recycled plastic is reinforced with glass fibre to increase the stability.
Oschwald and Engel went on a trip to Kenya during the prototyping phase to research the current recycling processes and to observe the lifestyle requirements of their potential users.
"This user-centred approach enabled us to integrate the needs and requirements of those affected into the design process," said the designers. "Subsequently, we designed and developed a prosthetic solution tailored to the Kenyan context."
The production of Circleg is based around the capabilities of existing manufacturing and recycling processes in countries such as Kenya where it will be implemented. Local production and fitting of the Circleg also creates jobs and income in communities.
"With Project Circleg we aim to establish a local value chain in the respective country," said Engel. "The local recycling, production and assembling of the Circleg prosthetic solution creates jobs that can secure an income for some people and their families."



Circleg有着强大的功能体系，并且可以适应使用者的真实需求，颜色也各不相同。

膝关节摆动系统让使用者在行走时能够保持膝盖的前后运动，而保护盖则能够保持整个系统干净整洁，同时使用者可以做到跪姿，而脚踝关节稳定系统则让使用者在蹲下时能够保持稳定。

The Circleg is designed to be highly functional and to adjust to the needs of an individual user's body. The colour is also customisable.
A swing-back-knee mechanism keeps the knee joint moving as the user walks, while a protective cap keeps dirt out of the mechanism and provides a pad that allows the user to assume a kneeling position. The ankle joint allows the user to maintain stability in a squatting position.



Engel告诉Dezeen的记者：“我们和残障人士进行了一些讨论，于是脚踝关节系统便应运而生。”

“脚踝关节系统让他们能够蹲下来，因此可以自己应用蹲式厕所，这在发展中国家非常重要，因为在这些国家中，许多场合都只有蹲式厕所。但是当前的假肢则不允许他们这么做。”

"We discussed ideas with amputees and the idea of an ankle joint was one of the outcomes of the co-creation," explained Engel to Dezeen.
"The ankle joint allows a squatting position and, thus, the use of a squat toilet. This is a very important aspect in many developing countries since they mostly use squat toilets. With existing solutions, amputees had a hard time using this toilets."



这种假肢当前正在肯尼亚开发应用，在原型进行测试之后便能够大规模投入使用。

Pratt Institute毕业生Jae-Hyun An近期也发明了一种假肢，使得使用者甚至能够翩翩起舞。

The leg is currently under development Kenya with the intention of being ready for use and distribution after the prototype has been tested.
Pratt Institute graduate Jae-Hyun An has also recently created a prosthetic leg that allows amputees to perform ballet like never before.