Authors: [Purab Balani], [Aleksandar Jeremic], [Syler Sylvester]
- Why is the problem you are trying to solve?
Over 1.3 billion people across the globe are afflicted with disabilities that make leading a normal life difficult compared to able-bodied people. More specifically, another arm or hand could make maneuvering around or reaching essentials much easier.
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/disability-and-health
- What motivated you to solve the following problem?
What motivated us to solve this problem was a personal experience one of us had that deeply moved us. While shopping at the mall, there was a person with a disability struggling to open a door. This moment highlighted the everyday challenges faced by individuals with disabilities, particularly those who have lost an arm or have limited motor functions. It inspired us to create a solution that could make their lives easier and more independent. Our goal is to develop technology that can assist with basic motor functions, ultimately improving the quality of life for people with disabilities.
Our proposed idea to alleviate some of the physical struggles experienced by individuals with disabilities, is a robotic arm that could be mounted in various places that can be used for performing basic tasks like picking up objects and opening cabinets.
(image of the proposed model goes here)
- Design system and components list - A robust system will be designed to layout the component interaction and general structure of the arm (10/23)
- CAD and print/cut the robot base, arms, and linkages (10/25)
- R&D for PCB - We will need to research existing stepper motor drives to adapt onto our PCB to also include drives for our three servo motors and serial connection to our game controller (Week something)
- Test components - After the design phase of our project we will shift to system integration which will start confirming our system design by testing that our components mesh with each other (Arrival of components)
- Assemble arm - With confirmation of our components being viable for our use, we will assemble our full system with components and iterate to create final assembly (Week 7)
- Calibrate arm - Map controller buttons and calibrate motor movements for smooth operations (Week 7)
- Test robotic arm function - After initial calibration and assembly we will move onto testing our system to gauge its functionality and limitations along with tweaking the system for best performance (Week 8)
- How do you plan on testing your proposed solution?
To test the effectiveness of our solution, we plan to demonstrate the ability of our robotic arm by picking up objects such as an apple or a water bottle along with demonstrating its effectiveness in aiding in opening a cabinet.
- All your work!