Chris:

The Song Slider: A device that allows Lee to control his music by using the skip and play/pause button. The music controller mounts to his chair and is controlled using Bluetooth and an Arduino.

The Song Slider is a small, compact device that is connected to his right armrest. Lee mentioned that he loves listing to music, but never could control what he listened to. He controls the music by sliding the hande up or down, one way for skipping songs the other for playing/pausing them. The device can wirelessly connect to his preferred device, and it is battery operated. Lee can use it at any given point in the day, without any hassle.

Leo:

The goal of our project was to create a device to play pause and skip music. It consists of a handle that slides back and forth to skip songs, and pushes down to play and pause music. The controller could also be reprogrammed to do another function on a computer. Even though we designed it to control music, it also functions as a universal button/controller.

Ollie:

The uStrum was created for Lee Cusack, a UX Designer with spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy. My partner and I are both passionate guitar players and we wanted to share our love of guitar with Lee. We created a device that gives him the ability to strum and play chords. This device can also be used by a wide range of people with motor difficulties.

The device works as follows: to play chords, there is a sensor that he can move his hand over. This helps him to mimic the movement of strumming while not requiring the motor function required to make a chord. When he activates the sensor, two servos press down on a chord on the neck of the guitar. For strumming, Lee uses his other hand to hold onto a handle on the body of the guitar. Lee pulls on the handle to drag the pick across the strings, and then a spring underneath pulls the pick back the other way. This is because it is easier for him to pull than to push. 

Andrew:

The uStrum was designed for Lee Cusack, a man with spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy. The goal for the uStrum is to give Lee the chance to authentically play the guitar. My partner and I have a great passion for music and guitar which made us think about how we could integrate one of our hobbies into this project. The uStrum is made up of two parts: one is an electronically driven mechanism that helps the player press down a chord. The second part is a device that allows the user to strum the guitar without needing to move their arms very much.

We interviewed Lee and asked him what he has always wanted to do but hasn't been able to because of his physical disability. He told us that he loves music and we thought it would be amazing for him to have a way to play the guitar in an authentic way. We broke down the different aspects of playing the guitar and thought about ways that would allow him to play the chords and strum. We worked with electronics and attached a sensor that detects the motion of Lee's hand when he hovers over the device. When the motion is close enough to the sensor, the shape that forms the chord pushes down on the fretboard and lifts back up when his hand moves away from the sensor. The strumming mechanism works by using the other hand and grabbing a handle attached to a pick on a slider. Within the sliding mechanism, there is a spring that helps guide the pick back and forth, making it easier for Lee to strum the guitar without needing to move very much. The uStrum allows everyone to have the joyful experience of playing the guitar in a modified yet very authentic way and gives everyone the chance to rock.

People with Cerebral Palsy have trouble controlling/practicing their fine motor skills. Because of this, everyday clothing that contains zippers and buttons are difficult to put on. Changing clothing can be an annoying and anxious time for kids with Cerebral Palsy; we want kids to have a fun way to practice getting dressed.  We boiled down the skills involved with zippers and buttons and came up with games that would allow kids to practice these skills. This vest not only allows kids to practice the basic motions behind zippers and buttons, but is also naturally fun and entertaining.

The skills involved in zippering and buttoning are pulling, pinching, holding (two hands), and slipping through a small opening. The games associated with each skill vary from spinners to levers to fill-in-hole matching toys. Every toy on the vest has a specific purpose.

Many pieces of clothing made for someone with CP are adaptive and simplify the process of getting dressed and undressed, but the Skills Vest teaches the kids to possibly be able to use the zippers and buttons on everyday clothing. This eliminates the purchase of an entire adaptive wardrobe.

We have been expanding on this project for the past two weeks. Since beginning our 2nd studio on the Skills Vest, we have transformed the vest. We delved into occupational therapy and why therapists recommend certain toys for children. After studying these toys and understanding their different therapeutic uses, we incorporated the existing toys into our vest. We then gave our vest an age appropriate theme (Farm) and reinvented our toys to farm animals. In the diagram above, each toy is shown and each of their individual skills are highlighted.  

Our vest is special because it can be individualized to each child wearing it. Since the toys are attachable and detachable, toys can be placed wherever is most convenient and beneficial for the child. Along with this feature, the vest can also be individualized by levels of games. If a child masters the beginners games, they can "move up" a level and attempt something more advanced.

Many people with cerebral palsy have difficulty grasping and accurately controlling writing implements due to their lack of fine motor controls, thus diminishing their ability to draw and write. In many cases, children with cerebral palsy have muscles which are constantly under tension. This is painful and makes fine motor control difficult and even impossible. 

Our solution to this common problem was to create a user-friendly writing aid for children who lack fine motor control, especially those with cerebral palsy. Drawing and writing can be a very mentally rewarding process, and we wanted to give kids without fine motor control the ability to draw and potentially even write. Furthermore, the act of using this tool can be beneficial to users' physical health as it stresses the muscles which are often under tension.

Throughout the process of designing this writing aid, our primary goal was to create an adjustable and comfortable writing and drawing tool for people living with cerebral palsy. We wanted to allow users to select from a variety of mediums, including pencils, pens, markers, etcetera. By securing the user's arm into a brace, we aimed to assist reduce the effects of tremors. Also, this brace would allow the user to use their entire upper body to control the device instead of just their hand. This is useful for users who have gross motor control, but lack fine motor control. Finally, we aimed to provide a physically therapeutic experience to users by stretching out muscles which are often tense in severe cases of cerebral palsy.

Our design was primarily made up of a two dimensional tracking system which guides the movement of the user's arm using a rhombus of steel pipes. The joints between the pipes use rubber washers to provide adjustable resistance. At one end of this tracking system is an arm brace which secures the user's arm. Attached to the arm brace is a hand rest for added comfort and the pencil holder which can secure a wide range of writing utensils. Finally, there is a grip which the user's secondary hand can grasp for added leverage.