Member of the project
In a modular and adaptive approach, the Willift facilitates daily tasks such as eating, drinking or moving the hand to the face for patients with limited upper limb mobility.
When folded, the WILLIFT is not visible. It has been designed to be non-stigmatising, unlike other existing solutions. The WILLIFT is thought to be simple and robust, guaranteeing confidence and safety.
The control of the WILLIFT is natural and intuitive, thanks to the detection of the movement intention. The degree of assistance can be adapted to the patient's needs and abilities, to accompany degenerative disease as well as rehabilitation.
No external assistance is required to use the device, and no modifications of the environment are necessary for installation. The WILLIFT can be attached to a wide variety of surfaces to integrate all aspects of the patients' lives.
The semester project organised by HackaHealth at EPFL allowed us to work on a solution for Williams, and more specifically on a motorised armrest prototype. A working prototype was designed and built, however it was not yet possible to use it on a daily basis.
In order to professionalise the prototype and obtain a solution that could be used on a daily basis, we applied for and obtained funding from Innosuisse and the FRH Foundation. This step also allowed us to take a step back and modify our concept.
We would like to turn our prototype into a real product. The help of BLAZE is very useful to develop our project, especially in parts like market research, business model, financial plan, etc.
We were able to join the H4 program, supported by the Fondation de la Source and the Canton of Vaud. This program will allow us to list more precisely the different pathologies targeted by the WILLIFT, and to organise numerous functional and comfort tests with different users.
