For this part of the project, we wanted to focus on getting the lower body attachment to work properly.
We used a piece of fabric and cut it to the circumference of a standard ankle. We hot glued a 2 inch PVC pipe (cut in half, with a band saw, and taped over sharp edges) to the fabric. The pipe was tilted at an angle to ensure the oar would not be vertical. After that, we sewed on velcro to the fabric. There was one set of velcro to attach to the person’s ankle. There was a second set of velcro to help keep the oar in the pvc.
After the peer review session: We decided to attach the lower body oar holder to a higher part of the body, so now we will have it just below the knee bend. We also want a better way to attach the PVC to the fabric than just hot glue. So we will try riveting it.
A problem we faced is that the rivet won’t be secure enough if it is going through just pvc and the fabric, we need to sandwich the fabric between two pieces of plastic. The problem now if find a plastic that 1) is not bulky and 2) won’t break if we drill a hole through it.
Now we are going to build a prototype for the upper body oar holder part.
Great progress Amanda and Esther! I like how you guys have adapted your project based on the feedback and have decided to change the lower oar holder to the knees instead of the ankles. I wonder how that will affect the ease of sliding the oars in. The angle might also be different so you may have to re-adjust the tilt in the holder. Looking forward to see where you guys go with it in the coming week.