Funding sought for Queensland invention that could change the lives of wheelchair-bound parents
A Queensland company claims it has invented a world-first tool that could change the lives of wheelchair-bound new parents, but now it needs help to make it a reality.
QLD News
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A kickstarter campaign has been started by a Queensland company that claims it has invented a world-first tool that could change the lives of wheelchair-bound new parents.
Founders of the Gold Coast-based PWA Mobility have released a prototype of a mobile baby capsule-like device that attaches to wheelchairs.
Dubbed the Care Station, the capsule can be easily moved in multiple directions for different needs a the touch of a button, such as feeding, nappy changing or simply for face-to-face bonding time.
PWA Mobility Director Adrian Burke said he hoped fellow Australians would help them raise the $100,000 needed to see the “high tech baby capsule” manufactured locally via the Kickstarter fundraiser.
“It adjusts up and down electrically, for the mother to have at breast feeding level or (for any parent to) bond with the child face-to-face or to lower it to be able to change nappies,” he said.
It can also rotate or tilt in any direction.
Mr Burke, 70, said one of the company’s founding directors came up with the idea after noting a wheelchair-bound new mum having difficulty handling tasks such as changing nappies and feeding her baby without assistance.
“Based on that, we did worldwide research to see if the concept existed, and it didn’t,” he said.
Mr Burke said co-director and biomechanical engineer, Willis Hetherington, then designed the prototype in conjunction with disability support agency, Spinal Life Australia.
Townsville resident Lochlan Kennedy, 26, became a quadriplegic after sustaining a spinal cord injury from hitting a sandbank in the ocean when he was 14.
He recently trialled the care station with his then- 3-month-old son, Lennox and said it was “awesome.”
“I can’t describe it. It enabled me to have my son on my lap comfortably and for us to be face-to-face without a pillow, or something else, (to prop him on) that made it a little bit harder.
Mr Kennedy said the care station made spending time and helping with Lennox, independently, more accessible while also increasing the safety for the baby.
“When you’re in a seated position, it’s a bit difficult to manage their legs and head things like that. So it was a lot more free and safer,” he said.
“I would put him on a pillow on my lap to play or interact with him but was a bit worried about moving around with him on my lap.
“I was able to wheel around and play with him in this capsule, without worrying if he was going to roll off the pillow, or how I could readjust him or how I could move with him in my chair.
“You can change the angle and the height and where the baby is positioned … it’s very adaptive to your situation.”
Mr Kennedy said he had come across similar inventions, but none were as well-designed ergonomically, as adaptable to different needs or they blocked the view of the wheelchair user.
Mr Burke said only thing stopping the Care Station from being produced so far was the lack of a manufacturer, which they are hoping to find in Australia.
“It’s a Queensland invention and a Queensland innovation, so we’d very much like to have it manufactured locally,” he said.
“But to do that, there’s a lot of resources needed. The major costs are the tools to make it, which cost up to $80,000.”
Mr Burke said the Care Station had been discussed with officials from the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) and there was promise the capsule could be covered under the scheme.
To donate to the kickstarter please visit here or pwamobility.com.au
Kickstarter is a funding platform for creative projects.
If a financial target is not reached, the creator receives none of the donated funds.