ADAPTABLE RIDE-ON CARS

UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON

A project that originally started at the University of Delaware but with trained volunteers in more than 40 communities Go Baby Go is a powered mobility program that offers children (ages 6 months - 3 years) with significant mobility impairment a means of mobility to explore the world by use of adapted ride along cars. These cars are meant to provide a low-cost early intervention option to allow children to have control over their own exploration. This helps support peer interaction, cognitive development and motor skill development, as well as giving kids with disabilities a chance to just be kids.

CONTRIBUTIONS

WIRING, SOLDERING, AND HARDWARE

At the University of Washington, I worked on building these ride along cars. I took lead on a team to both create the switch adaptive rewiring as well as the hardware modifications that were tailored to each recipient. This involved circuit, wire stripping, and soldering knowledge as well as making on the spot design choices to figure out how to best adapt the cars hardware to each child. At the end I had the very rewarding opportunity to see the children come and test out their cars and ultimately take them home to keep exploring the world on their own.