Danny Bernal, Tim Lewis, Eric Garcia, Julio Chavez
Limitless Wand is an elevator protraction device that was specifically designed for an individual who was born with Limb-Girdle Muscular Dystrophy, Type 2D. This type of muscular dystrophy involves a group of inherited ailments that cause muscle weakness and decreased amount of skeletal muscle around the hips and shoulders. Restrictions commonly associated include gripping strength, and the inability to raise your arms above your shoulders, which makes it very difficult to complete routine, everyday tasks.
This protraction wand was created specifically for an individual who is confined full-time to an electric wheelchair with a large Plexiglas tabletop. The biggest obstacle faced everyday on campus is their inability to push elevator buttons all by themselves. We focused on designing a protraction wand that would mount directly to the wheelchairs tabletop with super magnets. This solution gives the user with limited dexterity in their hands the ability to quickly access the device when approaching elevators and to quickly secure the device after using it. The trickiest part with designing the Limitless Wand was finding a rubber tip we could attach to the foot that would work on various types and shapes of elevator buttons. Many different prototype tips were tested until the correct shape and material was found and could function effectively. Limitless Wand is currently being utilized everyday on campus by one very happy individual and that’s what our team was striving to accomplish.