Abstract
Wheelchair users commonly spent about 12 to 16 hours a day in
sitting. In order to prevent pressure sore, they usually use a
“pressure relief” cushion. Among all the different types of
wheelchair cushions available on market, it was commonly accepted that
custom made contoured cushion is very effective in pressure
redistribution but rather costly to purchase. The main aim of this study
was to explore the feasibility of using interface pressure data for
custom contour cushion fabrication. A total of 10 able-bodied
individuals of both genders were recruited in this study. They were
asked to sit on a pressure mat placed at the buttock-foam cushion
interface. The pressure distribution was then captured and outputted in
actual physical dimension to produce a “pressure” contour
map on paper. This map will serve as the template used by the
“manual foam copier” to produce the required contoured
cushion. The relationship between the cutting depth and the interface
pressure values was calculated based on the mechanical properties of the
foam material and the average pressure at the buttock/flat foam
interface. The pressure relief characteristics of the contour cushion
produced were then compared with commercially available foam, air and
gel type cushions in terms of peak and average pressure over the ischial
tuberosities, and the total buttock-cushion contact area. Preliminary
results showed that a custom contour cushion fabricated with this
technique had a better pressure relief characteristic than flat foam
cushion, but comparable with both air and gel type cushions
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