Stan Brough is the man with an external skeleton – one he can strap on or off at will – with the aim of easing back strain.
“I got the idea from the fact that when your back is sore, one of the best ways to ease the pain is to lean forward and take the weight on your elbows, resting just above your knees,” says Stan, who is from Invercargill.
So he set about designing and constructing a harness that transfers body weight to the upper thighs while leaving the wearer free to move around unimpeded.
Stan demonstrated his Lumbar-eez – with patent pending – at the Fieldays’ innovation area, attracting a good deal of attention from the public.
Stan Brough demonstrates how his Lumbar-eez invention transfers body weight to the knees, helping ease back pain. “When I’m bent over like this, I’m completely supported by the harness,” says Stan, who spent much of the four-day event strapped in and leaning forward to demonstrate how his Lumbar-eez works. It’s not the first body support system Stan has invented. One of the popular slings used by many shearers to support their bodies is his invention too. “The advantage of my sling is that although the shearer is suspended in it from the ceiling, he or she is free to move around the shearing platform,” says Stan. “I could see there was need for a similar support system, which would leave the wearer completely mobile.” The harness uses wire rope and a spring system and hinge to automatically adjust to whatever position the wearer is in – up right or bent over. Stan says it needs some refinements but he’s pleased with how effective the prototype is.
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