BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

BACKGROUND

The original request from the sponsor was that a portable vehicle was needed for children with Cerebral Palsy.  Cerebral Palsy is “a nervous system disorder that causes muscular disability and mobility problems.”  While most pre-school children are able to run easily, 3-5 year olds with this affliction are often incapable of crawling (Sevrens).  To accommodate this and other disabilities, the vehicle must be able to fit most disabilities with adjustable features.  The sponsor asked for a vehicle that would be able to have push buttons or a joystick that would be easily moved with just a small exertion of movement.  The vehicle must also be able to fit through a door way and hold a child who might weigh up to seventy pounds.  Not only must the vehicle be adjustable for the back and legs, but it must also be neck adjustable.  The vehicle must also be very safe and should be able to move about a playground without any trouble.   

The organization that requested this vehicle was EPICS, ‘Engineering Projects in Community Service.’  Jorene Proper, the sponsor for the EPICS project, works with the disabled children on a day-to-day basis as a physical therapist.  Her desire is to see the children mobilized and function in a manner similar to the other children on the playground and indoors. 

The problem given to KIDS IN MOTION is an important project considering the disabled children are in need of a means of mobility.  The importance of the problem will be taken care of in a timely and professional manner in that the vehicle will be worked on to the best of the team’s ability to ensure the children will have a lot of productive activity on the vehicle. The problem in handling the engineering tasks will require time and a realistic approach to vehicle engineering.  The team must come up with a realistic way to let a disabled child fit in a car-seat and operate the vehicle while being comfortable.             

Previous work on this application includes the Go-Bot, designed by Christine Ott, an occupational therapist at UC San Francisco-Stanford Health Care's Rehabilitation Technology and Therapy Center in Palo Alto, Calif.  The Go-Bot, which is available in many medical supply catalogs for $5,000, features a moveable button-operated control panel, a padded frame and harness that supports the children in an upright position, and an open-front design that simulates walking as opposed to driving a car (Sevrens).  The difficulty with this product is its exorbitant expense, and it’s indoor limitations.  The Go-Bot does not have the power, ground clearance, or ruggedness necessary for many playground terrains.   

The problem at hand is simply a vehicle that must transport a disabled child across a wood-chip playground or inside a building on a flat surface.  The vehicle must have a push button or joystick device that can be operated with one hand and move either forward, backward, left, right, or in the directions in between each.  The vehicle must have a car-seat that is adjustable with a connected head rest that is adjustable up and downward.  The vehicle must operate on a battery and move fast enough to move across a wood-chip playground surface, but must be safe in all aspects.  Finally, the vehicle must be viewed as an object the children will want to use, so the industrial design aspect of the vehicle will be prominent. 

OBJECTIVES

Kids Without Bounds will designed an indoor/outdoor powered mobile unit for use by disabled children ages 3-5 years.  The device features powered steering with controls designed to accommodate the physical limitations of the children.  The vehicle also employs seating adapted to comfortably restrain the child while supplying necessary head and neck support.  A working prototype was produced under the allotted $600 budget for December 12, 2002.   

• Vehicle steering must be controlled electronically.  The controls must be simple enough to train a child to use a wheelchair.  The controls must also be adjustable to accommodate the physical limitations of children with limb syndrome. 

• The vehicle must have sufficient power to navigate any potential playground surface, such as grass or tanbark.  The rider must also be capable of traveling up wheelchair ramps. 

• It must be lightweight and compact for use both indoors and out.  It needs to fit into the rear of a station wagon for transport between facilities.  Doorways and narrow hallways should not impede movement.  The weight of the vehicle must not exceed 65 pounds. 

• The seating must be adapted with full restraints and support for head, neck, and torso. 

The critical design/process issues included making a vehicle that will be both aesthetically pleasing through Industrial Design aspects and also able to support a disabled child through mobility and access.  The constraints within this project include the budget and allowable size of the vehicle (it must fit through a doorway).  Another constraint is that the team must finish the entire design process in less than four months.  Limitations within this project include the engineering and ergonomics for a vehicle for a disabled child.  The vehicle must support the head of a child and also support the legs and torso with a seatbelt device.  The vehicle must also be safe and sturdy.

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