From Friday, April 12th, 5:00 pm to Sunday, April 14th, 2:00 pm, we participated in a Make-a-thon. Yes, it was a LONG weekend, but I had a lot of fun, not just developing the idea with my team, but also seeing the brilliant ideas that other teams came up with. It felt amazing to be finally turning our ideas into something tangible and demonstrating it to others.
Before heading into the event, my team and I were still exploring a couple of different ideas for the protective cover of a power wheelchair joystick and decided that we would try to develop a prototype for both. One of the ideas was an armadillo-style cover that would function like the cover that is found on baby strollers.
On Friday evening, we met with Ryan, our expert user, and shared this idea. He seemed to be interested in the idea but shared a few of his concerns about it, including the visibility of the screen, buttons, and joysticks that would be protected by the cover. After the meeting, my team and I discussed the idea further, wondering whether it would be best if we continue to focus on trying both ideas or dropping this one. While discussing it, we also realized that this armadillo-style may not be as effective if it is used in a windy condition as the rain could still easily get to the electronic parts of the chair. Therefore, although we really liked this idea since it was unique, we decided to focus our efforts on creating a prototype for the other idea throughout the event.
After this decision was made, one of my teammates and I decided to scavenge for materials around the Fablab. Since we decided on the skin idea, similar to that of the phone covers, we were looking for a transparent material that could be wrapped around the arm of a power chair. We were very lucky to find one that perfectly suited for this purpose.
The following day, a fellow student from the Fablab course joined our team to work on the project together for the duration of the event. After we caught him up on our ideas and the progress, we were able to work together extremely well, making progress quickly. From gathering the rest of the materials to designing the prototype, everything progressed smoothly. Using the dimensions of Ryan’s power chair that we measured earlier, we made a copy of the arm using styrofoam. Based on this model, we were able to wrap the transparent material around it to mold and cut it into the shape that we needed it to be.
In addition to the cover, we wanted to provide texture on the part that covers the joystick to allow for a firmer grip for the users. Not only would it allow for easier use for the user, but it would also provide a more secure feeling, which we decided was important to offer with our product. We were able to mold a material around the joystick with grooves of a grip to demonstrate this.
While we were working on this, one of the teammates worked on using Arduino to create a testing device that could detect whether moisture was entering through the cover or not. He was able to code and successfully build a device that would make a beeping noise when it detected moisture. Although we do not think this would be a part of the final product, it is something that we plan on using to test our prototypes in the future to check for its functionality.
Initially, although I was happy that we were able to create a prototype and demonstrate our idea to others, I was not as confident in it. I thought that it did not have enough differentiating factors that made it unique. Fortunately, others did not think that way. From judges to supports, everyone showed their interest in our idea and provided their own inputs for it. Everyone was so supportive that I felt proud to showcase it. I learned the importance of not doubting myself and instead, being proud of the work that my team and I have put in throughout the event. From working in a team environment, providing and receiving feedback, to learning to use different tools, this experience taught me a lot of valuable skills that I will continue to use.
For the rest of the semester, we are hoping to move on from this transparent plastic material that we found and work with silicone instead to create the cover. Now that we have the idea set on how it will look like and how it will be used, we want to create it with the actual material that we are hoping the product to be made with. With silicone, there may be additional adjustments that need to be made on our design, which is why we believe it is critical to create a prototype with it. We are very excited to see how far we can get with the rest of the semester.
Hey Matthew, I loved your final model you’ve created for the Make-A-Thon. Especially I liked how you were able to create something that your user want and can use after the Make-A-Thon. I hope you can bring this to life after this event. What stood out the most was your Arduino implementation that can detect moisture seeping into the machine. I think it was brilliant. I hope you guys keep up the great work.
Hey Matthew, your final prototype is really impressive. It’s also great to see that you and your teammates made lots of efforts in your project. The circuit idea is really great because your team is the only one who utilize the circuit design. I think your team really reach the goal that helping Ryan and other electronic wheelchair user solving their problem. Congratulations that your team won the prize! I hope you can keep improving your product and probably do more testing, ask more people to try it, and gain some perspectives from different users. This is a good way for you to find out where you can improve.
Hey Matthew,
I think you did a really impressive job with your prototype. I think that you guys put in a lot of hard work to come out with a fantastic product. This is something that is going to directly help Ryan in his everyday life and I believe you guys should be proud of that. Overall looks like a very productive weekend. I can’t wait to see where you guys take it from here.