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Emma Lavelle was born with a rare congenital disorder called arthrogryposis. This condition is congenital, which means that it exists at birth, or even before birth. Muscle weaknesses or fibrosis may be a result of this condition. Emma was not able to move her arms. Older children can use robotic prosthetics to gain control over their movements. But 2-year-old children are not regarded as candidate for prosthetics.
Wilmington Robotic Exoskeleton, or WREX can be used to help children carry out voluntary movements. The device can be adjusted to accommodate subjects of different size, weight, and arm lengths by changing the number of bands or sliding the telescoping links. To find a solution for a toddler some serious thinking was necessary. Tiny parts were needed to design a device that was suitable for Emma.So why not use a 3D printer to print out the tiny parts? Durable plastic, used to make LEGO, turned out to be suitable material for the tiny parts. The great thing is, as Emma grows, replacement parts can be printed out that fits her changing body. The company has since made a couple of devices designed to help and support young children.
Emma calls them her magic arms and when they took the device off her she said, “I want that!”
