Design+Build:Empathy

 Mila - Older adults are frequently unable to perform tasks they used to enjoy. The Writing Glider is a writing assistive that is designed for older adults that allows the user's arm to write with a constant, fluid motion. The Writing Glider is slipped onto the forearm like a cuff bracelet, lightly applying pressure to the wrist. The device has padding on the inside to keep the wearer's arm comfortable and secure. On the bottom of the device pieces of felt are stacked together to create a smooth gliding motion. This will help wearer move as they write to maintain good control over their hands.

The Writing Glider focuses on giving older adults the ability to do the task they use to enjoy. Writing can be a form of storytelling, communication with family, or taking notes on new skills and abilities. This can be important for older adults as it keeps them stimulated with enjoyable occupations. The Writing Glider was designed for Alice, who has an auto-immune disease, carpal tunnel, and arthritis. The second client is  Bobby Joe, who suffers from Parkinson's Diseases. Their medical conditions impair their fine motor skills, so that they have difficulty writing, but the Writing Glider restores their ability to write. This device encourages designers to think of ways older adults be integrated into society in a functional and fulfilling way that can bring them enjoyment and is empowering. 

Lucy - Writing Glider: a writing assistive that helps the user freely move their forearm while writing. The assistive has different attachments to fit the needs of the user and to help the user write on different surfaces.

The Writing Glider was made to help a woman named Alice take notes in class. Alice loves school and wants to go back but she lost fine motor movement in her fingers making her handwriting uneligible. The Writing Glider enables her to write by moving her forearm. The writing glider consists of four parts: an armrest, a ball caster bottom (for rougher surfaces), a felt bottom for smoother surfaces, and a pencil holder that gives you more control over the pencil.

To use the user will insert the chosen bottom into the armrest and slip their arm between the strap and the armrest to tighten the strap they will pull the loose end away from their arm. They will insert a number two pencil into the pencil holder and proceed to write.

Oliver's Brief:

     The Table Walker challenges preconceived notions of walkers as purely medical devices. Walkers have been viewed as solely medical devices in the past, but this project changes that. The Table Walker is an organic-looking statement piece made out of MetaComb and Burlap composite materials with two sets of handles, one on top and one on the side, and some shelves, which are below its signature feature, the table. This hinged table folds down from of the top of the walker and uses locking supports to stay level. This table has an engraved chess board on the top so the user can play chess or checkers to interact with their friends. The Table Walker engages an issue that many older people face, which is that they can feel disconnected from the world around them. Using a walker does not help with this, as it forms a physical and mental barrier between older users and whoever they are talking to. The walker allows the user to initiate conversations since it looks so organic and futuristic. It also folds out to form a table, which lets the elderly user connect with others they invite to sit with them at the table. Our project helps the elderly person using the walker, as it allows them to connect with other people and is designed to not form a mental barrier. This walker will give the user a healthier view on life because of how they will be able to enjoy having a walker, not just as a medical device, but as an enjoyable device. This project raises the question of how people interact with the elderly, and if there is a way we can improve the lives of the elderly, leading to increased social interaction and community.

      The project is being designed for Priscilla, who feels cut off from the world by her walker, and she wants a walker that is functional as well as visually pleasing. Priscilla wants to be able to connect with other people and doesn’t feel like she can, especially with such an impersonal looking walker, like the one she currently has. It alienates her from the others at the retirement home, as none of them have a walker. Our project is a futuristic and organic looking walker with a table that folds out of it by using hinges and an axle. It also uses a folding brace to make sure it remains in the locked position. This also allows the user to eat and drink on the table without spilling anything. It also has another side that can fold out to double to the size of the table. It uses a new type of composite material inspired by MetaComb, which is cardboard stacked and glued together in a very specific way. It uses cardboard, epoxy/resin, and burlap, all laminated, to make the walker strong and light. The user tilts the walker onto its front wheels and rolls it forward a few inches. They then set it down, walk forward, and repeat until they get to where they need to go. They can then pull it up to a chair, pull the table up and push the other half over so it lies flat. This will let the user utilize the walker to its full potential.

PJ's Brief:

     A stylish walker with a fold-out table designed to help an older adult feel more socially integrated and confident despite her disability. The walker is meant to help Pricilla feel less alienated whenever she is in public, and adding in a functional use. Having a more attractive walker can make her feel much more confident. To execute this PJ and Oliver made a futuristic, curved walker that can be used as a style piece and also features a folding checkers board that can be used for tea and coffee.

     My project exists because elderly people often feel socially excluded because the things they carry with them seem so medical and ugly. It helps Pricilla and any other older adult that might want to use a more stylish walking aide. Having an attractive walker reintroduces the older generations into society in a new light. It raises the question of why did it take so long to accept these people for the disabilities they could not help. Hopefully this will start to trend and will become a standard in society for older adults to be more integrated. Pricilla will use it in her everyday life to get around the assisted living home and also whenever she chooses to enter the world. The patients name is Pricilla and she has trouble standing up. We are making the walker more stable and strong so that she can lean on it to stand up. She is somewhat self-conscious and likes to appear as a stylish person. The project has lots of rounded edges for style and a folding table that breaks in the middle for storage on the walker. It hangs on dowel between the main supports. It can be propped up to use as a tea/coffee table or also a chess board. This is innovative because previously not much medical equipment has had attractive features. By adding this,  I hope this design will help people will become comfortable with illnesses and the cycle of life.

Maddie Johnson-Harwitz

The Stand Assist:

An assistive device to bring more independence to the elderly by helping them stand up from a sitting position with more ease and comfort.

Modern society does not do enough to assist the elderly and care for their mental health, as much of the elderly population struggles with feelings of helplessness. The Stand Assist is designed to combat these issues and enable the elderly to feel empowered and independent. The Stand Assist was designed for a client named Prisilla, who was severely weakened by a seven month long coma. Due to her weakened muscles, she has extreme difficulty getting up from a chair. It can take her ten tries to fully stand up, as she attempts to build momentum and throw her body forward, catching herself on her walker. The device uses her momentum and then actuates to assist her to rise into the standing position. The design of the device is minimalist and elegant to appeal to a very proper Prisilla, who was reluctant at first to use an assistive device.

Although it was designed with Prisilla in mind, the Stand Assist is an assistive device that can empower many elderly people who struggle getting up. The improved design fits as two knee braces connected across the legs at the knee joint. The motors on the outside of each brace are started by a single switch, which straightens the braces until they are fully extended, pushing the user from a sitting position to a standing position. 

Our assignment was to create a simulation of a disease for the user to empathize with the victims. To do this we had to find and research a disease that could be represented mechanically. Parkinson’s proved to have physical symptoms that wished to recreate. We chose to represent the hand tremors and the poor posture. To represent hand tremors, we created a laser cutted hand plate that would mount on the back of one's hand. Atop the hand plate we vertically placed a motor surrounded by laser cutted walls in order to provide stability. A 3.5 centimeter ellipse was then meshed to the gear on the motor. On the far side of the ellipse was a 20 millimeter M6 screw with two M6 nuts holding it in place. The hardware was incorporated to provide additional force exerted on the hand with each rotation of the motor. This created for more realistic hand tremors. To power the motor, we created a wrist module to encase a 9 volt battery. We then soldered a wire connector to the motor leaving a connectable side for the battery. Sturdy fabric strips and velcro were used to secure both the wrist and hand modules. To represent the poor posture that is often associated with parkinson’s, we designed a back brace that forces poor posture. This consisted of creating one large curve and notching four additional pieces horizontally. The back brace also used fabric straps to secure itself to the user's back. Our project produced extremely realistic results. The hand tremors were very natural and made normal tasks exceedingly difficult. One of the best traits of our project is the hand modules ability to shake more vigorously when the user performs a task. When the user grabs an object such as a pencil, the hand module will tighten around the hand creating faster tremors. This is often how hand tremors affect those with Parkinson’s disease. The back brace creates an unbalanced feeling and forces the user to experience bad posture. The two elements create for an overwhelming, slightly scary, and empathizing experience for the user.