The Rice engineering students developed a balance-training system and combined it with an interactive video game. The device was designed to enhance the physical mobility of children, ages 6-18, with conditions that affect their balance, such as cerebral palsy, spina bifida, or amputations.
The system uses a series of Wii Balance Boards lined up between special active handrails, which provide feedback on how much force a patient is applying with their arms.
Steven Irby, an engineer at Shriners' Motion Analysis Laboratory, pitched the idea to Rice's Mechanical Engineering Program last fall.
"They wanted us to build a balance system that would cost them less than $5,000, that would let the kids practice and have an engaging game to encourage them not to use their balance aids," said Michelle Pyle, a Rice Mechanical Engineering student.
Students came up with the solution of using the Nintendo Wii Balance Boards to give a measure of the center of balance coming from the patient's lower body. Next, they had to figure out how to measure the force coming from the arms. There are a few products already on the market for this purpose, but they are either not practical or are very expensive.
"So we went back to the basics," said Drew Berger, a Rice Bioengineering student. "We designed a totally novel sensor box that can give us all three dimensions of force."
These custom built sensor boxes are the main component of the active handrails, which provide force feedback, telling therapists how heavily patients are relying on their arms to aid in balance.
The last part of the system was the interactive video game developed by a team of computer science students. "Designing something for therapy is a little different," said Computer Science student, Jesus Cortez. "The rules of game design still apply; you want to make it fun, something that people will want to do over and over again."
The game allows patients to shoot approaching monsters by hitting particular spots on the balance boards with their feet. The game gets harder as the patients improve, and the ability to keep track of scores provides an incentive. Students are working on a way to integrate feedback from the handrails into the game, where points would be subtracted if a patient puts too much pressure on the rails.
Using the relatively inexpensive console components, students were able make the prototype for less than their budgeted cost of $2,000. The efficient design of this system could become a cost-effective addition to other physical therapy departments in the future.
The final unit is currently being finished. A clear acrylic cover will be placed over the Wii boards to eliminate any gaps between them, while still allowing patients to see the boards. The engineering seniors that created this device hope to have the final product delivered to Shriners Hospital before they graduate next month.
