World leaders are taking notice of a little hub on UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 campus where young lives are transformed in powerful 麻豆精品 S� make that mega-powerful 麻豆精品 S� ways.
True story: A teenage girl sketches a drawing of a bionic arm on a piece of paper. It 麻豆精品 S檚 a princess arm, you might say, with gold swirls and strong, elegant fingers. Surely, this girl 麻豆精品 S� Annika is her name 麻豆精品 S� doesn 麻豆精品 S檛 believe the cute picture will go any further than a scrapbook of mementos 麻豆精品 S� does she? The world of prosthetic engineering and design is cumbersome, complex and exorbitant. It 麻豆精品 S檚 never been a place for kids. Except Annika sends the sketch to Limbitless Solutions in Knights Plaza on the UCF campus. There, in a small office of computer desks and an even tinier manufacturing space, a team goes to work on Annika 麻豆精品 S檚 dream. Six months later, there it is: a bionic princess arm, designed, built and ready to use.
麻豆精品 S淥ne advantage of being small is that we can bring ideas to life quickly, 麻豆精品 S� says Limbitless branding director Mrudula Peddinti 麻豆精品 S�18, who majored in emerging media and digital media. 麻豆精品 S淚t allows us to change the conversation about bionic arms for underserved kids. 麻豆精品 S�
On Dec. 3, Peddinti and Annika Bryson-Emmert took the conversation to a stage no one could have imagined in 2014 when a group of UCF students founded Limbitless: the United Nations.
The United Nations in New York City 麻豆精品 S� no pun intended, but how in the world did this happen?
It 麻豆精品 S檚 actually the second time we 麻豆精品 S檝e sent someone from Limbitless to speak at the U.N. Our cofounder, Albert Manero 麻豆精品 S�12 麻豆精品 S�14MS 麻豆精品 S�16PhD, went three months earlier. Annika was there, too. It says something that they 麻豆精品 S檇 invite us back.
They must have liked what they heard the first time.
The first conversation at the U.N. focused on empowering girls who need prosthetics. We 麻豆精品 S檝e found that parents are far more willing to seek out options for boys, maybe because boys are perceived to be more physical. The ratio of prosthetics being sought and accepted is just one girl for every five boys.
How can your little place at the center of campus change that?
Design is one of the keys. The typical bionic arm looks just the way you 麻豆精品 S檇 imagine a bionic arm to look: robotic and mechatronic. The appearance feeds right into a stereotype that makes girls less likely to want a bionic arm.
And Annika has helped you break the stereotype?
When she drew up her idea for the ideal girls 麻豆精品 S� bionic limb, we didn 麻豆精品 S檛 know how it would be received. But think about it: who would know better how to design a bionic arm for girls than a bionic girl? We do the same thing for boys 麻豆精品 S� empower them and give them a voice in what we create.
Bionic arms have been around for decades. Limbitless has only been around for five years. How did you even get into the conversation about changing the game, let alone lead it?
It 麻豆精品 S檚 because we 麻豆精品 S檙e different, and the time for a different approach is long overdue. The medical and tech industry has been focused on the research and development of bionic arms, and that 麻豆精品 S檚 important. But to make an impact we need to change the focus from technology to the voices of the underserved 麻豆精品 S� the kids. It 麻豆精品 S檚 trying to imagine what it 麻豆精品 S檚 like to be that kid hiding behind mom or dad because I 麻豆精品 S檓 missing a hand and I don 麻豆精品 S檛 feel accepted for who I am. By letting a boy or girl create his or her own arm, it allows them to take control of their own story and to be more confident about themselves. That 麻豆精品 S檚 the dramatic change we want to lead.
You said kids are 麻豆精品 S渦nderserved. 麻豆精品 S� What do you mean by that?
The socio-economic barrier is enormous when it comes to prosthetics. A bionic arm typically costs between $40,000 and $100,000. Insurance companies often don 麻豆精品 S檛 consider an arm to be as necessary as a leg 麻豆精品 S� you figure that one out. It 麻豆精品 S檚 worse for children because they 麻豆精品 S檙e still growing, and who wants to pay for a $40,000 arm every two years? For us, it costs about $10,000 to fully fund a child in a clinical trial, and the entire cost is donated. Plus, by personalizing the bionic arm they 麻豆精品 S檙e more likely to actually use it.
Why wouldn 麻豆精品 S檛 they use it?
A typical bionic arm is clunky. It 麻豆精品 S檚 frustrating for those trying to use them. Usage rates for upper-limb prosthetics are reported to be as low as 37 percent. Most users eventually abandon them. So we develop video games as training tools. It 麻豆精品 S檚 an immersive experience where you use your prosthetic on the controller. Kids don 麻豆精品 S檛 even realize they 麻豆精品 S檙e training themselves. We call that kind of learning experience 麻豆精品 S渉iding the vegetables. 麻豆精品 S�
You do all of this 麻豆精品 S� the video game development, the design of the bionic arms, the manufacturing 麻豆精品 S� here in this one space?
The small scale gives us some advantages. We collaborate with people from many disciplines on UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 campus 麻豆精品 S� , , , digital media, and . We 麻豆精品 S檙e starting to do more with and too. It 麻豆精品 S檚 a busy place.
And how does an art enthusiast like you fit in?
It 麻豆精品 S檚 actually a perfect fit. I 麻豆精品 S檓 from a family of doctors and engineers, so when I entered UCF as a freshman in 2014 I privately wondered how I 麻豆精品 S檇 ever use art to make lives better 麻豆精品 S� while also making a living for myself. Then I accepted an internship at Limbitless Solutions and connected right away to the mission.
As an artist, how would you create a picture of the mission?
I 麻豆精品 S檇 just point to kids like Annika. She 麻豆精品 S檚 playing soccer. She 麻豆精品 S檚 engaged with friends. And she 麻豆精品 S檚 now spoken at the United Nations twice. She has a really cool bionic arm, yes, but even more important is that society isn 麻豆精品 S檛 controlling her life story because of a physical challenge. She controls her own narrative, and that 麻豆精品 S檚 powerful beyond measure.
