SUMMER 2010

Gulliver engineers: OPEN and ABLE to help

When most of us see a problem, we complain, and then move on. Not the engineers of Gulliver Prep (Florida). They see a problem, and try to fix it. When you’re traveling, for example, are you tired of being delayed because it takes so long to inspect your suitcase? The Gulliverites designed a suitcase with see-through compartments for quicker airport inspections. Are you plagued by arthritis or carpal tunnel syndrome? No problem — the students invented an electronic ergonomic box opener.

“We want our students to design and develop technology solutions that improve the quality of life,” said Claude Charron, chair of Gulliver’s Engineering and Biomedical Science Department “That is the overriding premise — for our students to learn not just from textbooks.”

Textbooks were nowhere in sight when a team of engineering and biomedical students met Scott Dorfman, who is confined to a wheelchair due to cerebral palsy. Dorfman’s challenge is that he had to depend on others to open and close doors for him. The challenge of the Gulliver students was how to make him self-sufficient in this area. In collaboration with Dorfman’s employer, Sunrise Community, the students developed the “Operational Portable Entry” (OPEN) device, which uses a telescopic mechanical arm with a clamp at the end to open doors. When attached to a wheelchair, it pivots horizontally and can be adjusted vertically. Opening doors at home or at work is now a breeze for Dorfman.

The OPEN device was not only embraced by Dorfman, but it also earned Gulliver Prep one of five finalist spots in the National Engineering Design Challenge, in which 250 high school teams competed for the best technological designs for assisting persons with disabilities in the workplace.

Another innovation developed by the student engineers is “The Assistive Bag Lifting Enabler” (ABLE) that improves the efficiency of workers with repetitive strain injury — mostly involving their backs. The device is currently being used at Goodwill Industries in Miami by its janitorial service. “The biggest problem in our industry is lifting trash bags,” said Gines Olivares, division operations manager for Goodwill Miami. “It’s a significant safety issue where the most people get injured, so we are very excited to be a part of this project in that the ABLE gives a broader range of people with disabilities a better chance of becoming employed.”