Research News

In an apparent first for the Cave Hill Campus, a Master of Philosophy (MPhil) student in electronics has created an exoskeleton arm using 3D printing to assist individuals who have difficulty using their own. 

 

The invention by Evrico Inniss was done under the guidance of Lecturer in Electronics in the Faculty of Science and Technology, Dr. Ramon Sargeant.  
 

The exoskeleton was designed using Autodesk Fusion 360 software.

 

“As I was walking and driving about, I saw a lot of people who had loss of movement on one side of their body after getting a stroke. Seeing that made me go in the direction. I wanted to develop an arm that could assist people with minor strokes in terms of recovery, rehabilitation and therapy.” 

 

Initially, the 24-year-old was interested in developing a prosthetic arm but changed focus to the exoskeleton after further investigations. Prosthetics are artificial body parts, while an exoskeleton is a hard outer layer that covers and protects a part of the body. 

 

Inniss said he opted to use 3D printing because it was compatible with his research and seemed the best choice for the development of a product that was lightweight, cost-friendly, and easy to use. 

 

“Once you have a lot of creativity, you can do basically anything with 3D printing.” 

 

He co-presented his research with Dr. Sargeant during Teaching and Learning Week of the Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL) held virtually last June. The title of their presentation was “Re-Imagining the 21st Century Research Capabilities with 3D Printing”. 

 

Using Autodesk Fusion 360 software, Inniss explained that he had designed a motor holder to lift and lower the hand. It also keeps the motor stationary and parallel to the upper arm of its user. 

 

Additionally, electronic circuits necessary for the functioning of the exoskeleton were fitted within a small housing unit placed inside the hand area of the arm. 

 

“I really like this because of the lightness of the material. Instead of using some sort of metal on top of the fingers, I used plastic which can basically do the same job as metal because we just want the fingers to move inward and outward when the person wants,” he said. 

 

The exoskeleton arm took approximately eight months to design and an additional six months to build. Though weighing about four and a half pounds, it was designed in a manner that would not feel uncomfortable or heavy when strapped to the individual’s arm and upper body, Inniss explained. 

 

“When you have the exoskeleton arm on someone, they wouldn’t really feel the weight of the motor because of how it is positioned, and they wouldn’t really feel anything else. It feels natural, it’s not weighing down one side of the hand compared to if the person was using an all metal or mostly metal exoskeleton.” 

 

Dr. Sargeant said the innovation displayed by Inniss is representative of what he has seen coming out of his department, where there is a strong focus on developing solutions to real-world problems. 

 

“Innovation is generally nothing new to electronics students. Almost all of the final-year courses in the electronics programme have some form of a project component to expose students to real-world problem solving. There are also research courses where students have to propose, design, build and demonstrate a workable solution to an assigned real-world problem. These research courses have produced projects such as a rotating LED clock, a 3D LED cube (Evrico's undergraduate research project) and a homemade aerial drone. I have found that the students, who take these research courses, generally express a desire to pursue higher level degrees and future study.” 

 

The lecturer said there is also emphasis on collaboration across departments in the faculty in the area of research. 

 

“Currently the electronics department collaborates with other colleagues in the faculty, such as Dr. Adrian Als and his blue cane project to assist visually impaired individuals and Dr. Carlos Hunte with automating his physics experiments. There are also plans for further sensor development to help rehabilitate patients with motion injuries.” 

 

For Inniss, he is fulfilling his passion. He began tinkering with technology as a boy and started honing his skill at the Barbados Community College, where he pursued the Associate Degree in Electronic and Computer Engineering. On completion, he attended Cave Hill Campus, thereby becoming the first among four siblings to attend university, and where he pursued a bachelor’s degree in electronics, followed by a master’s degree. With dreams of pursuing a career in medical engineering or academics, he decided to do an MPhil, which he hopes to complete this semester.