Shuwen Jiang, Chase Philpotts, Tara De Souza, Terence Li, James Litvak
Role: User research, Brainstorming, Drawing, Prototyping
Project Overview: #wearable device #inclusivity #medical #fabrication
Medical Design Project: Create a medical assistive device to assist clients with mild CP in effectively grasping objects of varying circumferences following muscle weakness in the hand.
User: NIJ SURI
A young adult male, naturally left-handed due to mild CP since birth, faces challenges in grasping objects for more than 7 seconds with his right hand due to muscle weakness. Nij employs a grip using his thumb, index finger, and middle finger for object manipulation; however, his ring finger and pinky tend to curl inward towards his palm.
Examples of Nij's hand grip and use of Distal, Middle, and Proximal Phalanx
Addressing Niji's concern, our focus was enhancing his ability to hold cups over extended periods. Consequently, we devised two strategies: an exoskeletal assistive device to improve overall grip on various objects and a magnetic assistive device specialized for cup-holding tasks.
Prototyping:
We have systematically developed four strategies, progressing from ideation through material exploration to structural refinement.
Final Model:
Details of assistive device to aid client’s mild CP grip loss.
