Design Criteria

The following is a list of critical design criteria for this project:

• The product should be retrievable from a distance

• The product should still be safe and strong enough to catch falls up to 6 kN

• The product should be easy to use, such that a climber can attach or deploy it with one hand

• The product (for sport climbing, not trad) should be able to fit with preexisting bolts currently used on most routes

Additionally, we want to design our product to meet the following secondary design criteria:

• The product should be lightweight such that a climber can easily carry it on their rack

• The product should be configurable or customizable such that it can also be used for trad climbing

In order to satisfy the identified need, the product should be retrievable by a climber when they are unable to safely access the protection device; this can be either something that replaces existing protection (quickdraws, nuts, cams, bolts) or something that can be added to existing protection to get it down. 

As with all protective gear, the device should not compromise safety, and should be able to withstand up to 6 kN of force. Since all sport and traditional climbers place protection during the act of climbing, the device should be easy to use and deploy with just one hand, as most climbers will likely be holding on to the rock face with the other hand. 

Ideally, the device will be lightweight, such that it doesn't add unnecessary strain to climbers and thus discourage them from using the device. It would also be nice to have the design be customizable such that it can be used for both trad and sport climbing.