Ava Morales takes her mobility car for a spin. The car is designed to be used for children aged one to five. (Image courtesy of Texas Tech University.)
Originally, students in the mechanical engineering design class at Texas Tech signed on to a project to build a mobility device for young children with limited mobility because it looked like fun.
“Like making a go-cart” explained senior design student Sebastian Bahamonde. But very quickly they realized their project could be much more than that: it could be transformational for the child they were building the prototype for and more importantly, if they did it right, the project would have the potential to change lives.
Young children with limited mobility often fail to develop cognitive spatial awareness, and struggle with both depth perception and hand-eye coordination. A mobility device would provide these children with the ability to explore their world easily and develop the same skills that mobile children do.
Problem solving was the first challenge for the team. After spending most of the first semester identifying and exploring specific mobility issues and possible solutions, the team planned their design with computer-aided-design (CAD) and 3D drawings. Their concept was a frame containing electronic parts controlled by two independent motors that operate the back wheels. The front wheels were caster wheels, a combination that allowed the device to possess a zero-turn ratio.
The students also designed the device to be easily adjustable, to accommodate children of different ages and abilities and to allow for different uses. They included a seatbelt for safety and ensured the device was compact enough that a parent could easily fold it up and take it wherever it was needed.
Two Texas Tech students pose with the finished product. (Image courtesy of Texas Tech University.)
Finally, the design called for an extra wide padded seat that would allow a child to sit cross-legged if they chose to, but still allow the vehicle to fit through a door. The team also didn’t abandon their sense of fun. The students wanted the device to have a race car feel and incorporated that into the design, along with choosing a bright blue plastic shell for the vehicle.
The design proved to be the easy part. The second semester design course was dedicated to manufacturing, troubleshooting and ensuring the device’s controls were safe. Even the smallest of changes could alter the balance of the vehicle and students were forced to start the process over again numerous times.
The university’s mechanical engineering machine shop was out of order during the project timeframe, so the class was forced to seek out other methods of production. In the end, they settled on a 3D printer to produce the plastic shell for the car. However, the shell came out malformed, forcing the team to spend valuable time repairing it with Bando and a heating gun, followed by two full days of sanding. The team also bought fabric and padding to create a padded seat on the device.
One of the biggest challenges for the group came from working as a team. They learned to avoid what one participant called the “you’re wrong phenomenon,” and to appreciate the unique strengths of each team member. That required a tremendous amount of coordination as team members worked on things simultaneously and then had to ensure the pieces fit together. They learned to function as a team and process input from other, experience that will prove invaluable in the workplace.
Their efforts paid off and the car was delivered to young Alva Rosales early this past December. The students hope that Alva will not be the last child to receive one of these cars. They have applied for a patent and believe that it could be produced on a large scale at a reasonable cost that would not require assistance from Medicare, Medicaid or insurance companies.
“It has really helped my confidence,” said Eddie Erlbacher, another senior design student on the team. “To go through engineering school, it is a lot of math and calculations. But really seeing something go from the beginning stages of just an idea to a full-on product, it really is satisfying and a boost to my confidence that I can actually be an engineer. This has affirmed that this is exactly what I want to do and go into design after college. Now I have the confidence that I can be productive and innovative.”
For more information, visit the Texas Tech University website.