Assistive Locker Opening Device

This is an easy on/off locker attachment to assist with opening lockers. We worked with our school's special education program to give students with restricted motor skills the independence to open their own lockers with this device, rather then the tiny groove handle.

The suction cups came from Amazon and were about $12 with tax for a pack of ten, allowing one to make up to 5 handles with one pack. The press-ins came in a pack of 25 at at cost of $12, so there are more than enough at a super low cost!

Tools:

Heat gun/lighter (to heat up the press-ins)

3D printer

Pliers

Materials:

Press-ins

Suction Cups

We used OnShape to design this handle, and then sliced it with Prusa. The device was printed on a Prusa i3 MK3S+ with PLA filament. Attached is the GCode which can be directly uploaded to this specific 3D printer and ready to go (It will not work on any other printer, as the settings are ultra specific to this printer). The print takes just under 8 hours and was printed with 30% infill, and was super solid and durable when we tested it countless times during drop tests.

We took the 3D print and secured it in a bench vise (table top clamp) with the holes for the press-ins towards the sky. We then took the press-ins and held the wide lip with pliers and heated them up with a heat gun. A lighter would also work and they became hot enough when the brass color slightly darkened into a caramel color. Then press them into the holes slowly until the lip has reached the edge of the whole. BE CAREFUL, as the plastic around the holes gets extremely hot and metal can easily burn your skin. Let them cool down for 5-10 minutes.

Once the press-ins have cooled down, screw in the suction cups tightly and securely, twisting until they will no longer rotate. Make sure the little tabs on the rim of the suction cups are oriented in the same direction. The great thing about this system is the suction cups are replaceable if their 'stickiness' becomes less strong. Just unscrew them and replace!

Your new handle is ready to be used. Just stick it firmly onto any part of the locker, that has no holes under the suction cups (they must be on a completely smooth surface). Hope this helps!!!