Engineering Design Projects to Aid Persons with Disabilities: An Engineering-Business Alliance

PI：埃伯哈特，艾伦；Dobbs， joel提案号：1263941本提案的目的是为阿拉巴马大学伯明翰分校（UAB）工程学院的本科生寻求美国国家科学基金会对帮助残疾人的设计项目的持续支持。这些活动针对生物医学工程（BME）高级设计专业（BME 498/499）的学生，以及一般工程专业的大一新生，他们将承担项目，帮助患有衰弱性神经肌肉疾病和损伤恢复的特定残疾人或个人群体。在过去的14年里，NSF-RAPD/GARDE项目资助了50多个高级设计原型项目，以帮助当地客户，并累计培训了近500名本科生。目前的提案旨在延续这些成功，同时引入一个新的商业工程联盟，其中商业专业的大四学生将加入BME大四学生，组成多学科设计团队，重点是设备的商业化。新的联合项目负责人（多布斯博士）将从商业角度提供指导，并就市场分析、商业模式/计划和商业化主题提供客座讲座。我们还建议学生沉浸在制造轮岗中，在那里他们将获得最先进的金属和塑料制造，质量评估和控制以及良好生产规范（GMP）的实践经验。迄今为止，项目是与大伯明翰联合脑瘫（UCP）及其附属机构Hand-in-Hand和LINCPoint，以及UAB医院、贝尔中心和阿拉巴马州儿童医院等合作完成的。这些资源将在未来几年继续提供项目想法；然而，在这个提议中，我们引入了与湖岸基金会（里默博士）的新合作，重点是锻炼活动和对康复患者的监测。在BME 498/499项目中，项目创意将来自学生与参与的临床医生和治疗师的轮岗，他们将作为客户。原型和可销售的设计将由高年级学生组成的团队在两个学期内完成。由PI、个人客户和来自合作机构的物理治疗师组成的咨询委员会将继续确保充分的学生监督，以开发帮助残疾人士的新型设备。大一新生的设计项目（为期5-6周）将从PI与客户的互动中获得项目创意。本提案内载有一份可能的项目清单。智力价值：建议的活动是智力上的价值：临床轮转与参与医学教师提高学生的接触；从创意到发明的体验式学习教授批判性思维，并将新知识与先前的学习相结合；学生可以获得ABET要求的几乎所有学生成果方面的专业知识。与商业的新合作伙伴关系将使我们的学生参与真正的多学科团队设计。我们与湖岸基金会的新合作将为解决现代康复工程问题提供凝聚力和吸引力的实践经验。制造轮岗将提供必要的GMP知识，并为复杂材料和制造工艺提供更多的机会。设计本身往往是新颖的，因此将探索创造性和原创的概念。这些设计是由残疾人构建、测试和使用的，这为工程专业的学生提供了有意义的设计经验。我们之前的成功证明了有足够的资源，并支持了PI和机构的资格。更广泛的影响：一个重要的好处是为残疾人社区提供服务，为受助者免费提供辅助设备，从而提高生活质量。通过与客户的互动，学生的体验得到提升，并最终看到他们的劳动成果。项目故事将在地区新闻媒体、高中和社区外展活动以及国际专题讨论会中出现。这些活动吸引了地区高中生（少数民族人口较多）进入数学、科学和工程领域。BME本科项目吸引了很高比例的女性和少数族裔。拟议的努力在UAB工程和商业之间试点了一种新的创业伙伴关系，将生物医学设备转化为商业成功，并在全球范围内销售。学生团队将被鼓励推销他们的创业公司，并参加阿拉巴马州发射台的商业计划竞赛，为他们准备一个新的BME硕士课程，并获得创业证书，继续这些多学科的创业活动。

PI: Eberhardt, Alan; Dobbs, JoelProposal Number: 1263941The objective of this proposal is to solicit continued NSF support for design projects to aid persons with disabilities, for undergraduate students in the School of Engineering at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). These activities target Biomedical Engineering (BME) students in Senior Design (BME 498/499), as well as general engineering freshmen, who will undertake projects to aid specific disabled individuals or groups of individuals suffering from debilitating neuromuscular conditions and injury recovery. Funding by the NSF-RAPD/GARDE program the past 14 years has led to the delivery of over 50 working prototype senior design projects to aid local clients, and cumulative training of nearly 500 undergraduate students. The current proposal seeks to continue these successes, while introducing a new Business-Engineering Alliance, in which seniors in Business will join the BME seniors to form multi-disciplinary design teams with an emphasis on commercialization of devices. The new co-PI (Dr. Dobbs) will provide mentorship from the business perspective and provide guest lectures on market analysis, business models/plans and commercialization topics. We also propose immersion of students in a manufacturing rotation where they'll gain hands-on experience with state-of-the-art manufacturing of metals and plastics, quality assessment and control, and good manufacturing practices (GMP). To date, projects were completed in partnership with United Cerebral Palsy (UCP) of Greater Birmingham and their affiliates, Hand-in-Hand and LINCPoint, as well as UAB Hospital, the Bell Center and the Children's Hospital of Alabama, among others. These sources will continue to provide project ideas in coming years; however, with this proposal we introduce a new collaboration with Lakeshore Foundation (Dr. Rimmer) , with an emphasis on exercise activities and monitoring for rehabilitation patients. In BME 498/499, project ideas will result from student rotations with participating clinicians and therapists, who will serve as clients. Prototypes and marketable designs will be developed by teams of upperclassmen working over two semesters. Advisory committees consisting of the PI, individual clients, and physical therapists from the partnering agencies will continue to ensure adequate student supervision for development of novel devices to assist those with disabilities. Freshman design projects (5-6 week duration) will be continued with project ideas from the PI's interaction with clients. A list of potential projects is included in the present proposal. Intellectual Merit:The proposed activities are intellectually meritorious: clinical rotations with participating medical faculty enhance student exposure; ideation-to-invention experiential learning teaches critical thinking and integrates new knowledge with prior learning; and students gain expertise in nearly all Student Outcomes as required by ABET. The new partnership with Business will allow our students to engage in truly multi-disciplinary team-based design. Our new alignment with the Lakeshore Foundation will provide cohesive and engaging hands-on experiences solving modern rehabilitation engineering problems. The manufacturing rotation will provide needed exposure to GMP and will provide enhanced opportunities for sophisticated materials and manufacturing processes. The designs themselves are often novel and will therefore explore creative and original concepts. The fact that the designs are constructed, tested and used by disabled individuals provides meaningful design experiences for engineering students. Our previous success demonstrates sufficient access to resources, and supports the qualifications of the PI and the institution. Broader Impacts:An important benefit is the service to the disabled community, by providing assistive devices at no-cost to the recipients, resulting in improved quality of life. Student experiences are heightened through interaction with their client, and ultimately seeing the fruits of their labor. Project stories are featured in regional news media, high school and community outreach activities, and international symposia. These activities attract regional high school students (large minority population) into math, science and engineering. The BME undergraduate program attracts a high percentage of women and minorities. The proposed efforts pilot a new entrepreneurial partnership between UAB Engineering and Business to turn biomedical devices into commercial successes that are marketed worldwide. The student teams will be encouraged pitch their start-up companies and enter a business plan competition with the Alabama Launchpad, preparing them for a new BME Master's program with a Certificate in Entrepreneurship to continue these multi-disciplinary, entrepreneurial activities.