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A Look at Foot-Operated Door Opening Mechanisms
Following the pandemic, hands-free options will rise in popularity
Now that folks are keen to avoid touching door handles for fear of virus transmission, we'll probably see a rise in the uptake of foot-operated door opening mechanisms. Here's a look at some of the foot-based solutions on the market, most of which are designed for doors without latch bolts.
The StepNpull, alternately branded as the ToePull, resemble angle irons with an extra lip that's serrated:
Enter a caption (optional)The Clean Escape and the Footpull have you open the door by hooking underneath with your toes:
Enter a caption (optional)The Toe Opener lets you decide whether to go over or under:
Enter a caption (optional)As does the DoorWave, which is a bit designy-er:
Enter a caption (optional)All of the designs above are simple pulls. But this elaborate German-engineered design, which is connected internally to the latch bolt of a conventional door, is probably the sexiest:
Enter a caption (optional)Created by inventor Sascha Klein, it's called the Metiba foot-operated door opener. And yes, it can be used both ways:
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Comments
I wonder why this design never really hit the market years ago, but thanks to corona it might get more publicity. But what about children who needs to open the doors? Some doors have a lock, which means you cannot just pull on the door, you need to press down on the handle. The first design, which looks very strong and durable, solves this problem; but I was browsing the internet for more information on this product and I believe there are simpler ways to open doors by using one's foot. At the same time looking at the different design on the internet I discovered how children really struggled to open doors with these pull devices and it looked quite hard. There are solutions to this, but it is something to consider when designing a product such as this. I really think this is a great design and it is a good solution for bathroom doors, especially at the moment.
I wonder why this design never really hit the market years ago, but thanks to corona it might get more publicity. But what about children who needs to open the doors? Some doors have a lock, which means you cannot just pull on the door, you need to press down on the handle. The first design, which looks very strong and durable, solves this problem; but I was browsing the internet for more information on this product and I believe there are simpler ways to open doors by using one's foot. At the same time looking at a different design on the internet I discovered how children really struggled to open doors with these pull devices and it looked quite hard. There are solutions to this, but it is something to consider when designing a product such as this. I really think this is a great design and it is a good solution for bathroom doors, especially at the moment.
loving these!
Rain, thanks for doing a write up on these. Really helpful. Do you know much about this industry outside of the few products you've outlined; i.e., are each of these designs patented, is the utility of the method itself patented? Would love to discuss this with you in greater depth if you're interested.
The German system from Metiba.com is working very well. I'm working in a hospital and we have installed them in several doors not using the hand to open. I think it is not as complicated as it seems and I think we are using them because they are cheaper than the electrical openers. You can push and pull (not only swinging doors) because they have a connection to the handlebar.
Does the German one work for doors that open inwardly? Seems to me most bathroom doors open that way, and that's why all the others are door pulls.
The German one seems like an over-engineered solution to a relatively simple problem. All those moving parts... all of the other solutions look more durable to me.