Volunteer makers, artists, and engineers
We’re an eclectic group of assistive-tech hackers, 3D printing enthusiasts, fabric artisans, and amateur industrial engineers who focus on upcycling, DIY repairs, and open-source adaptive devices. We volunteer in assisted-living communities, special education classrooms, and other community spaces working with individuals and families to solve problems that fall outside existing institutional services. We make small repairs, house calls, and friends.
Get in touchRepair Club 101
The people behind the work
Co-Founder / Creative Solutions
Cleo designs and implements solutions requiring 3D fabrication or custom assemblies. The latter can include railings made from either aluminum extrusions or PCB. Cleo uses Fusion 360 for design work and Python for projects requiring coded automation.
Co-Founder / Resource Manager
Basil manages ARC resources, equipment, and bookings. He interviews ARC clients to determine how the club can best address their needs. Basil is the lead designer for projects involving custom woodworking or complex assistive devices built around microprocessors.
From the workshop and field
External resource
An Inspiring Open-Source Hardware Project In the latest edition of Make Magazine (Vol. 88), Joshua Pearce provides an excellent summary of a project he and his colleagues (Anita So and Jacob Reeves) developed at the University of Western Ontario. They set out to develop a low-cost mobility walker using standard wooden dowels and 3D printed […]
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ARC story
Specific Solutions to Specific Problems Our friend Jim asked us if we could help him repair his small reading lamp. The lamp itself was fine, but the plastic clipping mechanism at the base of the lamp had cracked. After asking to see where and how Jim was using the lamp, we realized that just repairing […]
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In the news
Reprinted from the Boston Globe In our experience, many mechanical wheelchair problems can be fixed using basic tools and elbow grease. But most wheelchair-users don’t have access to timely repair services, and commercial wheelchair manufacturers have little incentive to address the issue. It’s a national problem that significantly impacts people with disabilities in assisted living […]
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