A welfare organization has begun compiling a database of "self-help equipment" designed to help elderly and disabled people make use of ordinary everyday items on their own, increasing their independence.
Last December, the Association for Technical Aids, an incorporated public interest foundation based in Tokyo, set up a website for its database of self-help equipment along with instructions on how to make the items. The association, which promotes welfare equipment aimed at assisting the elderly and disabled with their daily lives, collaborated with manufacturers specializing in such equipment for the project.
The database contains about 150 ready-made items, like simple writing boards or spring-loaded chopsticks, and others that can be adjusted to people's individual needs. The site is updated regularly and the group plans to increase the number of items on the website.