Laser knowledge

[PabloPicasso]

Hi all. Not a boaty threas so my apologies. Read no further if you're only interested in boaty stuff!!

I saw a walking frame that has a laser to help People with Parkinson's disease, but its £1500!! See pix.

I was hoping to buy a laser that could project a straight line onto the floor beneath the frame, but I know nothing about lasers/electronics.

I see small lasers can be bought quite cheaply for £50 or less. Would one of those do?? Might also need an on switch mounted up by the hand grips.

Any help gudance gratefully received.

 

[dunedin]

Hi all. Not a boaty threas so my apologies. Read no further if you're only interested in boaty stuff!!

Surely that is what the Lounge sub-forum was created for? Perhaps in future post non boaty items there, saves your first line.

 

[chris-s]

We have a cheapy laser level thing that can sit on a tripod and has different end caps to project a point or a line. Maybe that would make a cheap source for something to canabalise.

 

[Mister E]

I have a Lidl Parkside battery circular saw that projects a red laser line.
So maybe you could look a using one from that type of tool.

 

[PabloPicasso]

We have a cheapy laser level thing that can sit on a tripod and has different end caps to project a point or a line. Maybe that would make a cheap source for something to canabalise.

Yes, that sounds like the type of thing that might be useful.

 

[PabloPicasso]

Surely that is what the Lounge sub-forum was created for? Perhaps in future post non boaty items there, saves your first line.

My apologies, next time

 

[tico]

Many cheapy laser pointers from ebay come with lenses that project a line rather than a dot

 

[penfold]

Cheap line projector; attach it to a power bank or a phone via usb to light it up.

 

[ylop]

That's a surprisingly powerful laser for a "consumer" product. It's a Class 3B which means it is NOT eyesafe - ie. if you shine it in someone's eye it may cause damage. it will be safer spread as a line than a focussed beam but the discussions about including it in a product where it's quite foreseeable someone falls over and the beam ends up pointing in a random direction would have been interesting. It's a green laser, generally, red lasers are cheaper so did they use green for a reason? (e.g. better contrast to human eye?). It's going to be relatively power-hungry - so presumably it needs that amount of output as both the initial cost and the power supply / battery size to keep it working would be obvious things to easily design out otherwise.

 

[DFL1010]

There, now it's sailing related.

 

[dunedin]

There, now it's sailing related.

Sorry, that's not a Laser - it's an ILCA

 

[PabloPicasso]

Cheap line projector; attach it to a power bank or a phone via usb to light it up.

Hmmm, don't think someone could walk too far with that projecting a line from their four wheeled rollator...

Perhaps a battefy powered model?

I don't know about the colour, but doesnt red light use a different part of the eye?

 

[PabloPicasso]

That's a surprisingly powerful laser for a "consumer" product. It's a Class 3B which means it is NOT eyesafe - ie. if you shine it in someone's eye it may cause damage. it will be safer spread as a line than a focussed beam but the discussions about including it in a product where it's quite foreseeable someone falls over and the beam ends up pointing in a random direction would have been interesting. It's a green laser, generally, red lasers are cheaper so did they use green for a reason? (e.g. better contrast to human eye?). It's going to be relatively power-hungry - so presumably it needs that amount of output as both the initial cost and the power supply / battery size to keep it working would be obvious things to easily design out otherwise.

On the U Motion the lazer is switched on by a thumb button the handle bar, and stays on for, perhaps, 20 secomds before fading out. Perhaps to save battery as it wouldnt need to be on all thw time.

It gives a cue of where to step to.

 

[harvey38]

Magnusson IM0301 Red Self-Levelling Cross-Line Laser Level - Screwfix

Something like this.

 

[penfold]

Hmmm, don't think someone could walk too far with that projecting a line from their four wheeled rollator...

Perhaps a battefy powered model?

I don't know about the colour, but doesnt red light use a different part of the eye?

Have a green one instead. They've got a usb lead; plug it into a phone, plug it into a power bank(which are just batteries with a wrapper) it will run.

 

[oldbloke]

If this is to give a start line to step over to help with the difficulty in initiating movements ,it is a very clever piece of thinking.

 

[PabloPicasso]

If this is to give a start line to step over to help with the difficulty in initiating movements ,it is a very clever piece of thinking.

Yes thats it. But at £1500 a go its not so useful.

There is a lot that can be done to train people with Parkinson's to take control of their movement symptoms. I use the frame occasionally as part of this process when needed. I'm reluctant to recomend it, or other similar items, due to the huge cost.

Just considering economically viable alternatives.

 

[PabloPicasso]

Have a green one instead. They've got a usb lead; plug it into a phone, plug it into a power bank(which are just batteries with a wrapper) it will run.

So it'd need a powerr bank too.

The only other things that'd make it really useful would be a remote on/off button that could be located on the handlebar, and a timer delay to switch it off again.

 

[oldbloke]

Maybe a mechanism to throw £1500 on the floor in front of you would work.

 

[oldbloke]

More seriously, would just a simple laser pointer or even a powerful led mini torch work?. Would a spot trigger the same response as a line?