Community Rowing Inc.: Adaptive Rowing Technology Project

Adaptive Rowing 

Adaptive Rowing: Rowing for people who have physical disabilities, people with visual and hearing impairments, and people with intellectual disabilities

International Rowing Federation: FISA

http://www.worldrowing.com/news/adaptive-rowers-open-the-munich-world-rowing-cup

Adaptive Rowing has been a breakthrough for 

The Three Categories for Adaptive Rowing 

defined by FISA (International Rowing Federation)

1. LTA (Legs, trunk, arms)
1. Use of at least one leg, trunk, and arms 
1. Visual impairment,  intellectual disabilities
2. Standard boat with sliding seat
2. TA (Trunk and Arms)
1. Functional use of trunk and arms but required a fixed set due to weakened lower limbs
1. Fixed seat
2. leg amputations
3. AS (Arms and shoulders)
1. Minimal or not trunk function
2. Fixed seat and rower is strapped at upper chest level to only allow shoulder and arm movements + back support to balance in seat

     Adaptive Rowing technology

This video shows the front-rower system and 2 step Transfer Board!

• 2 Step Transfer Board: 
  • 2 Step Transfer Board is attached to the riser and extends out over the gunwales of the boar, stabilizing it during the boarding process. This product helps wheelchair riders to transfer themselves to the boat much more easily.
  • The only problem is, who will carry the transfer board to the boat? (hinders independence of the adaptive rower)
• FrontRower Rowing System : 
  A drop-in rig designed for use in touring type rowboats and canoes. The rig includes frame, seat, and oars. It is ergonomically designed; it is designed to minimize physical effort and discomfit, and maximize efficiency and enjoyment. The rower travel facing forward in this system, so the rowers does not need to twist around to see where the rowers going. The system has a big comfortable seat with an adjustable reclining backrest. The rower can row with different combinations of the rower's body parts (one leg one arm, no arms only legs, no legs only arms, et). The oars feather automatically as well. 
• FES (Functional Electrical Stimulation)
• Allows Paraplegic athletes to stimulate paralyzed leg muscles. Rowers control their legs by pressing a button on the rowing machine handle, which then transmits electrical impulses through electrodes to the never controlling their leg muscles.

Project Ideas:

     I want to focus on how to help Adaptive rowers to be more independent. It is a very broad topic for a project, but I think there are many aspects that we can focus on to help adaptive rowers to be more independent. For example how can cox box help adaptive rower's independence and safety? How can we make height of the Back easy to control? One of the hardest object to deal with are pontoons as they need to be attached and detached on the dock side, they are heavy, and they allow water to keep coming in. So I was thinking of perhaps making pontoon similar to an air bag that deflate and inflate so it does not have to be detached and attached, which is too heavy for adaptive rowers to carry. Moreover, dock-side trainer and erg should also be developed in a way that will be easy for adaptive rowers to use. I would also like think about ways to help adaptive rowers carry things down the dock by themselves for more independence. 

Questions I would like to ask:

To the Rowers

• What is the biggest challenge for you as an adaptive rower?
• What are some of the challenges for you to be an independent adaptive rower?
• Do you have any challenge with feathering?
• What are your feelings about the Pontoons?
• How do you feel about dock-said training and erging as an adaptive rower?

To the faculty/coaches

• Do you have any challenge adjusting the Layback Angle for adaptive Rowers? How about for catch Angle and Rigger adjustment?
• What type of Adaptive rowing is your priority interest?
• Do you use FES?

Being Wrong Reading Response

Being Wrong by Kathryn Shulz and Engineering

     "You are WRONG." The one sentence no one wants to hear, always give us a moment of epiphany that everyone avoids to have. We want certainty, we want truth, and we make sure we HAVE them. We make sure we are right. However, it is inevitable for us to make mistake as Augustine once wrote "fallow ergo sum": I err, therefore I am. In the book "Being Wrong" by Kathryn Shulz, she discusses about the psychology, reasoning, and experience of being wrong. Her idea of "wrongology" leaves us a valuable lesson that may make our lives much easier: it is OKAY to be wrong. In fact, being wrong is actually GOOD. This positive aspect of being wrong pointed out by Kathryn Shulz can be easily explored through aspects of engineering such as the ways in which design can cause errors, the implications of failure in design, and the reality that products often must fail before they can succeed.

     Firstly, there are several ways in which design can cause errors in engineering. Engineers often fall in love with their first ideas. That light of the light bulb they thought they had or have is hard to let go as "our steady state seems to be one of unconsciously assuming that we are very close to omniscient (Shulz, 4)." However, this love for one particular idea can cause narrow-mindedness and prevent engineers to see better, more functioning ideas. Moreover, it may trigger engineers to IGNORE such errors, reluctant to admitting their errors. In addition to falling in love with their ideas, engineers simply cannot predict how design works until people actually start using them. People's minds are unpredictable; depending on how people were shaped in what kind of society they grew up in, people may react to a product's design completely different from what engineers expect. 

     The hardest thing of being an engineer, however, is that although there are so many factors that lead to errors, engineers simply cannot afford to be wrong. In fields like engineering, "certainty is the best choice because doubt is a bad one - counterproductive at best, dangerous at worst" (Shulz, 166). For example, the implications of errors in engineering may cause massive economic loss to life-threatening injuries. Depending on the design, the product may not only bring safety and huge profit, but also danger and debt. Engineers are human and we are all aware that we will be wrong at one point or another; thus, we must try to limit our errors, and focus on being less wrong rather than completely eliminating being wrong (which is impossible anyway). 

     Those errors that engineers face - hopefully while they are testing for the product - do have positive outcomes just as Shulz argues in her book about how being wrong can lead to improvements. "Psychologists  love errors and misconceptions, for they give important clues about the organization and operation of our minds" (Norman, 36); and so does engineers. As the reality of engineering is that the product must fail before it succeeds. "Error, disguised as the light of truth" (Shulz, 33) gives us valuable insight to the potential of the product. Thus, the ability to embrace errors and to learn from it is truly important in the field of engineering. 

     There are indeed ways to lessen mistakes as Shulz points out. It is to be open-minded and democratic. We must "foster the ability to listen to each other and the freedom to speak our minds, " (Shulz, 311). Then the way we deal with being wrong will be much more productive; "realizing we can tell a better one: rich with better ideas, better possibilities" (Shulz, 339) will be the one beautiful skill we can develop by being wrong. 

Prototype - Improving, improving, and improving..

The Collapsable Cup

Ever tired of looking for a cup? 

Ever sick of wasting so many paper cups? 

Ever tired of carrying humongous cups? 

We solved all these problems through our Collapsable Cup. 

This is the prototype of our product. 

Yes. We apologize for making you so excited. We only have developed a prototype for this awesome product. Now you say, what is a prototype? 

Prototype: a first, typical or preliminary model of something, esp. a machine, from which other forms are developed or copied.

• Alpha: the first version of the product to be built. It is not intended to be fully functional Instead, it is primarily used for testing purposes to help establish the direction of future iterations by eliminating unfeasible features and design aspects early in the process.

• Beta: functional version of the product based on discoveries and decisions made during the alpha stage.

Since we do not have the technological skill nor the material to create Beta prototype, we will  be developing Alpha Prototypes as our class assignments. The very first prototype assignment we received was....

Develop a prototype Improving Something.

Yes. It was a very broad topic, and my group had NO IDEA where and how to start. However, we managed to develop a very interesting product. The COLLAPSABLE CUP. 

Initial Sketch:

This was our initial idea - well after a meticulous filtering process we went through; we had way too many ideas - which is not TOO different from our final prototype. We had to make many different changes along the way because of the material we used, and other physical limitations of our first model. 

1. We first created the bottom part of the cup using foam. The diameter is 9cm. 

- We used the compass to measure the diameter, and cut a huge block of circular foam to cut into small pieces.

Then we added the dents in the bottom so the stick holders can fit in as you can see in the picture above.

2. We then made the stick supporters that fit the dent we made. 

- We made two sticks instead of one stick like our initial sketch for stability and to solve the problem of one side collapsing while drinking. Moreover, with sticks, it is easier to hold as well. 

3. We then made the body with ziplock as it is closest to what we pictured - waterproof and collapsable. 

- While waiting for the rings to be made using the 3D printer, we created our very first model just using the foam and cardboard supporter sticks to see if our idea was working before we went ahead with our rings. 

This test model for our prototype was actually very successful. It was sturdy, and functioning. It was just as we imagined the cup to be, and we even tested if the cup can hold water (We managed to hold water in the cup as well YAY)

After printing out the rings using the 3D Printer, we proceeded to develop the final prototype.     

4. We attached the support sticks on the bottom ring and attached it to the bottom supporter foam. We then finally attached the body part (ziplock) on both top and bottom ring to finish the product. 

How the bottom looks like when we collapse it
We used Velcro so the two sticks do not get detached from the bottom supporter. 

How the top looks like when it is collapsed 

FINAL PRODUCT

     Developing a prototype was very fun and exciting. Getting to use the 3D printer was an awesome experience as well. It was great to see how our ideas came alive and became a feasible product. I think our prototype can be improved in its stability and aesthetics; nonetheless, I believe that we did a great job on our very FIRST prototype. 

Product Creation For All: Assignment 2

The Design of Everyday Things: Chapter 2

"Well, in a while it won't matter. There won't be any films, just video-tape." (51)

      Despite the fact that this book is ridiculously out-date (look at the quotation above about VHS), this book is still very much applicable to this world with Blu-ray DVDs instead of VHS. In this chapter, "The Psychology of Everyday Actions," Norman relates the psychology behind our everyday actions to the design of products.  Norman states, "psychologists  love errors and misconceptions, for they give important clues about the organization and operation of our minds" (36). In a similar way, customer's errors and mistakes help designers to understand the success and failures of the product. Whenever I cannot use the product, I would always blame it on the environment or myself for being stupid instead of thinking about the actual problem of the product's design. I also would reward my intelligence for using the product well and swiftly instead of thinking about how well someone designed the product to allow me to do so. Thus, Norman's emphasis on the design of products gave me a whole new perspective for different objects I see in my everyday life. I now am much more careful and analytical about every object I see and appreciate/despise the wisdom/stupidity behind the products. 

Based on what I learned from this Chapter, I would like to talk about the infamous Multi-Function Devices (MFD aka printers/copiers) in Wellesley College:

Norman first talks about the Seven Stages behind our actions, which are:

1. Forming the Goal
2. Forming the Intention
3. Specifying an action
4. Executing the action
5. Perceiving the State of the World
6. Interpreting the State of the World
7. Evaluating the outcome

Based on these seven stages, Norman then proposes questions/tasks for Designers, "The Seven Stages of Action as Design Aids," which are:

1. Determine the Function of the Device
2. Tell what Actions are Possible
3. Tell if System is in Desired State
4. Determine Mapping from Intention to Physical Movement
5. Determine Mapping from System State to Interpretation
6. Perform the Action
7. Tell what State the System is in

Basing on these seven stages, I would like to analyse the interaction between MFDs and people in Wellesley College. 

• Determining the Function of the Device: Although it may look a bit more complex than the normal desktop printer, because people are used to seeing large-scale printers, people can easily determine that the MFD's are printing and copying. 
• Telling what Actions are Possible: Printing and copying functions are quite conspicuous; however, the system is way too complex for people to figure out what other actions are possible in one glance or without reading the user manual
• Telling if System is in Desired State: The printer makes sure the screen shows that all qued jobs are released; however, the screen does not show which jobs are completed. 
• Determining Mapping from Intention to Physical Movement: The buttons are visible for printing and typing; however, the touchpad part of the screen is not clearly explained. 
• Determining Mapping from System State to Interpretation: There are too many buttons and not clear state-indicator for users to understand the system state. 
• Performing the Action: MFD successfully does its job of printing and copying swiftly and eco-friendly (all prints are double-sided, which is a big part of Wellesley's "Paper Cut" movement). Also the log-in system allows user to print using any computer in Wellesley College. 
• Telling what State the System is in: The printer does not clearly show its state as the main page of the screen is always showing either a personal page of queued jobs or log-in screen. It does not show rather the printer is printing or copying. The printer seems to be always ON as well. 

Evaluation of the Printer's Effectiveness and Problems:

- What is Effective?

The printer is effective in its sense that it clearly shows its printing and copying function. It performs its printing job swiftly and eco-friendly. The printers successfully receive jobs from a secure personal account from any computer in Wellesley college. 

- What is Problematic? 

The Printer however has too many buttons and the touch pad part of the main screen is unclear and difficult use. Thus, it is difficult to determine what actions are possible in the device. The printer also does not successfully show what state the system is in nor if the jobs are completed or not. 

Needs Assessment:

1. Observe: I have observed students using the printers in both the Clapp Library and Lulu Campus Center. Surprisingly people were able to use the printer much more quickly than they complain how long it takes. However, the lines in the library was quite long, and students printing out one page were experiencing frustration. Many girls had trouble using the touch screen to log-in and to check if their print jobs are all properly printed out.
2. Ask: I had asked my roommate Galen Chuang about her experience with using the MFD as she needs to print out a lot of readings from the library. Moreover, in contrast to group interviews individual interview with my roommate was much more practical time-wise. I was able to get in-depth feedback from my roommate as we are close and as she was able to be honest with me. However, if I had done group interview to busy, intelligent Wellesley students, they probably would have avoided giving me feedbacks about what they could NOT do (and they probably refused my interview request as they are all busy doing homework). My roommate shared with me a similar experience to what I have observed. She first could not figure out how to log-in, but thought it was relatively straightforward afterwards. She also thought it took way too long for a single-page print jobs. 
3. Try: I definitely had difficulties logging in and I was very confused which page to go to release my queued jobs. I was very frustrated to see other people struggle and take my precious time waiting for them as well. I just got really impatient with waiting 10minutes for a single page. 

Mind Map for MFD

<Solutions>

Brainstorm

Using Pugh Chart

Two Best Ideas:

1. Since the reason Wellesley changed the printers is for paper-cut, I thought eco-friendliness is a very important category. Thus, my first selected idea is to get rid of printers and distribute ipads. It will be costly, but by making the school to have a deal with Apple, massive distribution of the Ipad for academic use should not be as costly or difficult as developing a whole new technology. Moreover, people will never need to print out anything, which totally eliminates the rigorous printing process through MFD in addition to saving papers. The only rate and effort problem will the time it takes for people to get used to the technical skills required to use an Ipad. 

2. Second idea is simple, but it will definitely cut down the time it requires to use the MFD. To be honest, MFD does not really made any difference in an eco-friendliness sense from having desktop printers connected to each computers. People use the desktop printer to print from MFD usually; thus, simply having for desktop printers connected to the computers will make no difference. There will be less long lines and it will be straightforward to use. It is also more realistic and cheaper than the ipad idea, but more effective than using MFD.