About The Design Lab - Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Improving The Lives Of The Elderly
Senior Friendly Shopping Cart
Matt Forget (CSYS/ELEC), Matt Guilfoy (CSYS/ELEC), Adam Pasquale (ELEC), Brian Calderon (ELEC), Jim Smith (EPOW),
Jim McKenna (MECH), Jeff Caldwell (MECL), Rob Garstka (MECL, Tommy Cheng (MECL)
Project Overview
Our main objective was to lessen the strains
that a shopping experience places on a senior
citizen by designing, building, testing, and refining
prototype systems. Our customers (retail
stores) need the cart and its subsystems to be
cost effective and to improve the shopping experience
enough for senior citizens that it influences
their store choice.
New Basket Shape and Size
To help increase mobility we created a
shorter cart. This helps the ease of turning
the cart. We also added a platform to rest
hand baskets, a shallower main basket for
easier reaching, and a slide out basket on
the bottom for bigger items.
Different Wheels
Using rear wheels with a larger diameter we
found we could reduce the average force on
the user by up to 95%. This also gives us a
smoother and more enjoyable ride.
Storage Box
Many seniors wanted a safer place to put
their bags or personal items. We decided to
design a box to attach to the rear of the
cart that can close protecting their items
In 2000 there were 18.4 million people ages 65 to 74 years
old, representing 53 percent of the older poplulation in the
US.
According to the US Census Bureau, those 85 years and
over showed the highest percentage increase in population.
The mission of Albany Guardian Society is to improve the
quality of life for seniors in the Capital District, of New York
State.
The team designed, built, tested and refined a prototype
shopping cart that improves the shopping experience for
senior citizens.
Subsystem Decisions
In order to determine what areas to focus
on we surveyed many seniors and see
what they wanted. Then we took these
items, rated them by priority and difficulty,
and created our subsystems. We decided to
change the size of the carts, increase the
mobility, the ergonomics, and general helpfulness
of the cart. Our Decision Matrix is
on the right.
Unique Handle Bar
We found that an ergonomically designed
handle bar would address common arthritic
problems in seniors and mimic the feel of a
walker to allow seniors to feel more comfortable
moving around with the cart.
Barcode Scanner
. We wanted to help Seniors with vision
problems read labels in the store. We experimented
with a barcode scanner to help
assist this.
Subsystem Priority D fficulty Weight Score
Cart Size 9.50 2.88 4 13.19
Mobi ity 8.00 5.88 5 6.80
Storage for Personal Property 4.63 2.50 3 5.56
Reading Lables 6.88 5.63 3 3.67
Outside Mob lity 5.25 7.88 3 2.00
Time Keeping 4.75 2.50 1 1.90
Difficulity Finding Items 5. 8 6.00 2 1.79
arge Gap in Child Area 5.13 2.88 1 1.78
ong Walking Distances 5.50 4.75 1 1.16
Carts Confusing 4.63 8.75 2 1.06
Seperating Carts 5.25 5.88 1 0.89
Multiple People Shopping 3. 8 4.25 1 0.80
Falling Over 4.13 6.25 1 0.66
Reaching High and Low Items 5.13 8. 8 1 0.61
Waiting For Check Out 3. 8 6.63 1 0.51
Transportation to and From
Store 3.50 7.75 1 0.45
Drive System
We experimented with force sensors and
electric motors to help assist seniors move
their carts around their place of business.
Braking System
A braking system in the cart will provide
security and safety for the senior. Having a
cart that will not roll away and hit another
person or a vehicle is a great plus. After preliminary
testing, mechanical braking was
preferred.
Project Engineer: Casey Goodwin (The Design Lab), Chief Engineer: Junichi Kanai (Electrical, Computer, & Systems Engineering Dept.)
Rick Iannello of Albany Guardian Society discussing the project with
Linda Schadler, Associate Dean of Academic Affairs
ALBANY GURADIAN SOCIETY
A L B A N Y N E W Y O R K
2010 Project Portfolio 23