"Look forward mirror" for use following eye surgery (head-down positioning)

This is something that could be very useful for anyone who has had a form of eye surgery called vitrectomy, which is done to fix a detached retina or a macular hole. The patient has to follow up the surgery by having to lie or sit face down for several days - very boring!

This little variation on a periscope was put together to allow a family member to see forward when her head was facing down - the user looks down into the device and can see the TV, or other people. The user will see everything the right way up - not a reversed or upside-down mirror image.

Please note that I didn't put too much time into making this look pretty, as it was only meant to be used for a few days.

Print Settings

Printer:

G&C CoreXY printer

Rafts:

Resolution:

Any

Infill:

Notes:

You can make these parts any way that suits you best, on any printer with a bed at least 20cm x 20cm, out of any material (I used PLA).

I had to print the base diagonally on my printer so that it would fit on the heat bed.

Post-Printing

Assembly

This originally used a 20cm square IKEA mirror with rounded edges (sadly no longer available) but any 20cm square mirror would work nicely. This was cut in half to make 2 identical pieces. Whatever mirror you use, try not to leave dangerously sharp edges or corners that could cut the user.

Each piece was glued to the edge pieces using general-purpose glue, backed up with duct tape for security, together with a strip of tape to cover the raw cut edges where the 2 mirrors meet. This doesn't look pretty, but after all it is only for temporary use!

Once the glue has dried, the mirror assembly is mounted using long M3 bolts through the middle holes, with the spacers to make everything fit nicely. If the assembly is too loose or too tight, adjust the thickness of the spacers. A few washers and nuts will make the whole thing secure (I used these knobs for convenience: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:421801).

How to use the mirror

1. Set the device a little way below the user's eyes, with the open side facing forward.
2. The user should look down at the lower mirror, and swivel the mirror assembly around until he/she can see what they want.

Category: Other