Without further ado lets delve into its design and specifics.
IxD
The interactive design for this device is really simple and effective. It is basically a spoon (or a fork) that allows you to eat without a lot of help. People with hand/arm tremors find basic day to day activities quite hard and it usually affects not just their quality of life but also their confidence. Think about going to a restaurant, eating soups and things like ramen that need precise movements even by those with practised hands. However for people with severe conditions of tremor this means extremely slow eating, eating with assistance and sometimes preferring not to eat certain kinds of food! Doing something as simple as eating without assistance is of incredible importance in such situations.
The Liftware website is also very specific in its instructions about who this device can help, what kind of tremors it can help with and to what degree. It provides a simple test to those who would like to know if they're suitable users for it and how much they recommend it usage. There also several videos that show how the spoon can be used and allows the potential buyers to view it being used by others in a similar situation as them.
UI
Liftware spoon is quite affordable for what it offers. According to its amazon price, a starter kit of Liftware is ~200 CAD which for the services it provides should be worth it. It is also aesthetically pleasing in a simple and clean design in white color. It also comes with its charger in a small box that can be conveniently carried around.
The liftware spoon works by counteracting the tremors through two motors that work opposite to the tremors and stabilize the hand by using motion sensors in it. In case of liftware spoon for people with arm mobility issues, the sensor detects and works against unintentional tilting or tipping. A small onboard computer distinguishes between the unintentional movements and intentional hand movement.
Since the device uses magnets to attach the utensil attachments, they recommend consulting with healthcare providers if the user has a cardiac pacemaker or other electrical implants devices in their
bodies, but other than that it is safe to use like a regular utensil.
UX
To provide a better experience, the Liftware spoons come in two different types that are directed for both people with tremors and those with hand and arm mobility limitations separately. Both are directed for their specific uses and work with sensor technology. It comes with 3 different utensil attachments of spoon, soup spoon and a fork.
It has a decent battery life of upto 1 hour of continuous use that could last for ~3 meals on a single charge.
It is even simple enough to clean by detaching the utensil and cleaning like regular ones, and the stabilizing handle can be cleaned with a sponge or disinfectant.
Other details
What makes this technology great that its made for some very specific uses that often taken for granted. They also have the research done with it to show an effectiveness of 70% less tremors that is available for users to look into and make intelligent choices.
Bibliography:
https://www.liftware.com/http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/mds.25796/abstract
https://www.amazon.com/Liftware-Steady-Starter-Kit/dp/B00JDSIOJE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fS01kn6YJ94
No comments:
Post a Comment