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“Doesn’t matter if it’s laborious or simple, nothing is unattainable. One simply must be devoted to no matter they need to do,” mentioned Seyyad Shahzad Ali, a Zomato supply accomplice, in a video that went viral a number of months in the past. In it, he was seen seated on a wheelchair that doubles up as a motorcycle.
When requested in regards to the curious car, Ali mentioned he was driving a “NeoMotion,” a mind youngster of some Indian Institute of Expertise (IIT) Madras alumni. Right this moment, 1000’s of individuals with disabilities throughout India are in a position to lead a lifetime of freedom and dignity, owing to the ingenious creation of this startup.
Indianexpress.com acquired in contact with one of many founders of NeoMotion, Siddarth Daga, to know the story of this distinctive car. Daga traced the origins of NeoMotion, a startup that has blossomed and is now on a mission to remodel lives of individuals with disabilities.
The life-changing second
NeoMotion’s journey stems from IIT Madras, the place Daga and different founders studied. Throughout their ultimate 12 months, professor Dr Sujatha Srinivasan, who leads the TTK Middle for Rehabilitation Analysis and System Improvement, launched them to the sphere of assistive know-how. This expertise, particularly the life-changing side of assistive gadgets, piqued their curiosity.
“We had been tasked with designing a swimming pool hoist for wheelchair customers,” Daga recalled. “The concept was to assist them safely and with dignity get into the pool and use swimming as a type of train, which is tough for a lot of because of the logistics of moving into the pool. This venture opened our eyes to the true challenges confronted by folks with disabilities,” he mentioned.
As a part of the venture, the crew interacted with quite a few wheelchair customers who opened up about their on a regular basis lives and struggles, particularly the fixed want of help for a number of the most elementary issues. Daga mentioned that these interactions introduced ahead how restricted mobility was impacting not simply motion, but in addition one’s sense of independence and dignity.
“That was a turning level for us. We realised that mobility is extra than simply getting from level A to level B—it’s about freedom, independence, and high quality of life. That’s what we wished to handle with NeoMotion,” Daga mentioned.
The superpower of user-friendly design
In the course of the dialog, Daga revealed that one of many key features behind NeoMotion’s success is its emphasis on user-centred design. “One main hole we recognized is that almost all wheelchairs available in the market aren’t snug. Customers advised us they may solely use their chairs for brief intervals due to discomfort or again ache, which affected their means to give attention to work or research. After we appeared deeper, we discovered that almost all wheelchairs had been standardised, with little thought given to customisation. Mass-produced in a single measurement, they didn’t accommodate totally different physique varieties or wants,” Daga mentioned.
Daga defined that not like regular wheelchairs which can be mass-produced in customary sizes, NeoFly is a totally customisable wheelchair that has been designed to satisfy the particular wants of a person. This consideration to element ensures that the wheelchair is purposeful and comfy, permitting customers to be seated for lengthy intervals with none discomfort. “Folks had been utilizing their wheelchairs for simply an hour or two a day as a result of they’d get again ache. That’s once we realised that the issue wasn’t nearly mobility; it was about consolation and usefulness,” Daga mentioned.
Founders of NeoMotion (from left to proper) Swostik Sourav Sprint, Dr Sujatha Srinivasan, Siddarth Daga, and Ashish Sharma.
Daga mentioned that NeoFly is tailor-made to the person’s physique measurements, with 18 customisation choices together with changes for hip width, thigh size, and shoulder peak. “The extent of customisation in NeoFly is unmatched,” mentioned Daga. “It’s designed to supply long-term consolation, permitting customers to give attention to their work, research, or every day actions with out worrying about ache or discomfort.”
How does it work?
NeoMotion contains the NeoFly––the wheelchair––and NeoBolt, the attachment that doubles as a motorcycle. The NeoFly addresses the necessity for consolation and stability, whereas NeoBolt takes mobility to the subsequent degree. NeoBolt is actually an electrical attachment powered by a lithium-ion battery. As of now, there are two variants––a 25 km vary and a 50 km vary––fashions.
Daga defined that NeoBolt comes with three ranges of velocity management –– 7 km/h, 15 km/h, and 25 km/h. The car additionally comes geared up with an anti-tip mechanism that stops it from overturning throughout sharp turns. “We’ve patented each the attachment system and the anti-tip mechanism,” he mentioned.
“One of many largest challenges wheelchair customers face is out of doors mobility. They typically need to rely upon somebody to assist them get right into a car or navigate public transport. With NeoBolt, we wished to provide folks the liberty to maneuver round independently,” Daga mentioned.
NeoMotion has been designed to supply consolation and mobility to its customers. (Picture: NeoMotion)
NeoBolt, in response to the corporate, is greater than only a mode of transport. “It’s a instrument that empowers folks with disabilities to dwell their lives totally, whether or not which means going to work, assembly mates, or just having fun with a time out,” Daga mentioned.
On accessibility and affordability
The dialogue additionally led to extensively held myths round assistive applied sciences. One of many outstanding misconceptions is that these applied sciences are staggeringly costly and inaccessible to those that want them probably the most. Daga asserted that NeoMotion is dedicated in direction of breaking such obstacles, and providing extremely purposeful but reasonably priced merchandise.
“We’ve labored laborious to maintain our merchandise reasonably priced with out compromising on high quality,” Daga mentioned.
The value of the NeoFly-NeoBolt mixture is Rs 1,10,000, which in response to Daga, is considerably decrease in comparison with its international counterparts. “We’ve made certain that customisation and out of doors mobility are inside attain for as many individuals as potential,” he mentioned.
The corporate’s merchandise transcend mobility. For customers like Seyyad Shahzad Ali, NeoMotion has opened up new alternatives of self-reliance. When requested in regards to the firm’s future imaginative and prescient, Daga mentioned that they’ve plans to take NeoMotion to different nations with related demographics as India. “We’re already exploring alternatives in Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Our merchandise are designed and made in India, however their potential impression is international.”
NeoFly was launched in January 2020 and by October 2020, the corporate supplied its first NeoBolt and NeoFly mixture to a person in Hyderabad. Thus far, NeoMotion has reached round 5,200 customers throughout India. “We’ve a minimum of one person in each state and union territory, and we’ve even reached Nepal and Bangladesh,” Daga mentioned.
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