Individuals with Parkinson's disease struggle with eating due to their tremors. Tremors are a common symptom of Parkinson’s disease, affecting around 80% of those who are diagnosed (American Parkinson's Disease Association, 2017).
The goal is to develop a device to aid those with Parkinson’s in eating without spillage. This issue proposes a device to mitigate the effects of the tremors by reducing spillage. Our device will allow those individuals diagnosed with Parkinson’s to develop a sense of independence.
In order to address the problem, our project proposes a spoon similar to an ice-cream scoop where the outer bowl rotates to cover the inner bowl to prevent spillage.
Our design approach had five main steps.
1. Initial Brainstorming and Sketches: Brainstorming and rough sketches of proposed devices
2. CAD Modeling: Designing the proposed devices in 3D using OnShape
3. Prototyping: Printing out the prototypes on a 3D printer
4. Integration of external components: Adding the components such as springs
5. Testing: Meeting with clients and determining the effectiveness of our spoon as compared to a normal spoon
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American Parkinson Disease Association. (2017, July 15). Tremor in Parkinson’s. APDA. https://www.apdaparkinson.org/what-is-parkinsons/symptoms/tremor/