MEMORANDUM
To: Members And Friends
NFB R&D Committee
From: T. V. Cranmer, Director of Research
Subject: Cane tips revisited
Date: December 20, 1995
Cane tips keep bobbing up and down in our discussions here, and
in the hallways, because they wear out. The explanation is
simple: The tips are made of materials that are softer than the
terrain over which we travel. Iron is softer than concrete. The
solution is simple, too: Make harder tips; Tips that are harder
than concrete.
It turns out that there are quite a few materials that are hard
enough to resist wear for long periods of use on concrete
pavements and a lot of other surfaces encountered in routine
pedestrian travel. We have picked a few materials that possess
the desired properties and affordable price tags. These are
machineable ceramics and scuff resistant polymer formulations
designed for use as bearings. We are also looking at castable
ceramic powders that can be molded in a thin shell over a light
weight and much softer core.
John Monarch, the civil engineer that has been a volunteer for
NFB for two decades and more, provided the data on physical
properties of roadways, city sidewalks, asphalt and many other
construction materials. Armed with this data, I approached
Blazie Engineering (who else?) to contribute engineering
resources to make four tips from four different materials and to
fit them to sixteen canes to be used by volunteers, like members
of the R&D Committee, who travel enough to wear out cane tips in
a short time. Four volunteers is really all we need. You get to
use canes of your choice fitted with tips mate from each of the
four materials in this first test.
If you want to participate in this project, send e-mail to me and
include the cane length you prefer. It could be that we could
have the first set of canes fitted with tips in time for the R&D
Committee meeting.
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