Handy Healer

Inspiration

Hand injuries are common in the workforce, yet many individuals neglect to seek immediate treatment, often dismissing minor wounds as insignificant. Unfortunately, this delay can lead to severe infections, prolonged recovery times, and costly medical bills. Recognizing this issue, we set out to develop a quick and efficient solution that empowers individuals to assess and address their injuries promptly. Our goal is to bridge the gap between injury occurrence and treatment, reducing long-term complications and ensuring better health outcomes for workers.

What it does

The HandHealer apparatus first scans the user hand placed under the camera for any red areas. It asks the user if they are inflicted with a sprain or a cut. In the case of a cut, the camera detects the red spot and the 3-axis arm applies disinfectant and a bandage to that area. In the case of a sprain, the user is prompted to place their finger on the sprain stations, where a splint is formed used a stick and medical gauze.

How we built it

• The team first started with 3D modelling using Autodesk Fusion, to begin constructing the physical components. From there, the rail and the arm components were assembled with servo motors to complete the hardware sub function. Additionally, a camera was attached at the top to detect hand movements, and cuts on hands. Moreover, software development involved using Next for front end and Flask for backend development. The backend mainly involved implementing servo motors, calculating and calibrating 3 dimensional axis movements. This was integrated with the GUI for user friendly design.

Challenges we ran into

One of the biggest challenges was the conversion from camera coordinate system to robot coordinate system. Also two different inverse kinematics frameworks were required for two different heads, thereby greatly increasing project complexity. In terms of software, the team ran into problems regarding the communication of the detected coordinates from the camera to the backend of the program.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

The team is most proud of the success of the 3 dimensional calibration of the arm, as it was able to accurately place disinfectant and bandages on the exact spot where the cut occurred on the user. Additionally, the team was proud of the effectiveness of the splint mechanism, which worked seamlessly with the software to provide a well placed stick with a tightly wrapped gauze wrap to create the splint.

What we learned

The team learned the importance of detailed planning and testing. Specifically, the team learned to test the program before deployment on network, as this led to numerous issues which could have been mitigated earlier on by simple testing.

What's next for Handy Healer

In the future, the Handy Healer prototype would be scaled up to be used in factories and hazardous workplaces. Additionally, the speed would be increased as this would greatly assist in sire emergency situations.

Built With

• python