The following work is about the development of mechatronics projects with a social impact where undergraduate students are involved. Students from different engineering areas come together to apply their knowledge and skills intentionally to the development of assistive and/or teaching devices to improve the quality of life of children with cerebral palsy, through awareness and detection of needs. By applying their knowledge in mechanics, mechatronics, computing, and sustainable development, students collaborate to design and build assistive and teaching devices that address the specific needs of these children. Through this work, students are encouraged to be more united and committed to their learning process, while also making a positive social impact that strengthens their transversal competencies like ethical commitment and social responsibility. The methodology for conceiving, shaping, and building these devices is also presented, following a generic design process in which students get involved from the beginning. These projects vary in length from one week to a regular semester and are often conducted in partnership with a non-governmental organization (NGO) dedicated to the care of persons with cerebral palsy. Different and classical design methodologies and rapid prototyping techniques have been utilized and implemented to integrate various components and complete the final manufacturing of the prototype. © 2024 IEEE.
Author Keywords
Index Keywords
