BioKneek

Summary

Won first place at UC Berkeley's 3DMC 3D Printing Designathon. We modeled and created a bluetooth-enabled prosthetic foot that helps users distribute their weight properly on their prosthetic leg, in order to help prevent muscle atrophy, bone density loss, back problems, between other health issues. The foot attaches to the prosthetic and interfaces with an iOS app giving real time feedback to the user via vibrations, telling them whether or not they are putting enough pressure on their prosthetic leg.

Inspiration

Hearing the problems Francisco faced with athletics we wanted to find a solution to enhance his mobility

After brainstorming with Francisco, we realized that maintaining weight distribution was a problem for him

We also discovered there was plenty of room to innovate, augment his prosthetic leg

Medical Consequences

Francisco identified some of the problems with incorrect weight distribution

Difficulty walking, Back pain, Muscle atrophy, Poor posture

Previous methods to overcome this difficulty: Physical therapy, Habitual correction

Solution

Augmented prosthetic foot that provides haptic feedback when incorrect weight distribution is detected

We collaborated with Francisco for iterative design by using his foot as a base model

First design we tried to use 4 load sensors hacked from a bathroom scale

Given space constraints we decided to use thin Force-Sensitive Resistor (FSR)

We first modeled Francisco’s prosthetic to in order to tailor a solution for his needs

We 3D modeled an arch that distributed the weight from his leg to 10 sensor locations in a sole modeled from Francisco’s foot

The 10 sensor’s were calibrated to Francisco’s weight distribution

Sensors detect incorrect weight distribution, and trigger a Bluetooth-enabled Arduino

An iOS app interfaces, and causes a subtle vibration