The Unspillable

Inspiration

When researching solutions to Parkinson's and hand tremors, we realized that spoons with actual self-stabilizing technology were very expensive, often easily above $300. Thus, we decided to try to make one with easily accessible microcontrollers, motors and sensors to make an affordable version.

What it does

The Unspillable is a smart spoon that uses a 2-axis sensor-motor system to counteract tremors and tilts in real time. The spoon bowl always remains perfectly level no matter the angle of the handle or hand.

How we built it

We wired together an Arduino Nano, a MPU6050 sensor, two servo motors, a button and a battery to be the core self-stabilizing system. Then we used CAD to create a case for it all and 3D printed it so we could use our system as the handle. We then finally attached the spoon so it could be used properly.

Challenges we ran into

One of the first challenges we ran into was the fact that we couldn't find two standard servos at the competition, we could only find continuous servos which don't work for our project. Luckily, we eventually found someone who was able to lend us one. We also had to re-CAD the case for the spoon as we realized it didn't perfectly hold everything. Researching the actual algorithm to counteract the hand tremors was also difficult.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We're proud of getting a motor-sensor system working along side our code in under 24 hours. We were able to create a working prototype that proves accessible technology can be made affordably.

What we learned

For some of us, it was our first time working with Arduinos and sensors. We also learned a lot about debugging these systems. Mistakes that we often attributed to the code/software were actually just issues with accidentally flipping the wiring. We learned to organize our wires a bit better to make debugging easier.

What's next for The Unspillable

Redesigning the frame for the spoon so it is smaller, more comfortable to grip and more visually appealing. We also want to make it rechargeable so it lasts longer.