Current Pilot
Disability-Led Design
The Menderi works with disabled individuals through research, design, fabrication, testing, and refinement. Participants define the need, shape each decision, and learn the tools behind the build.
10
2
30 / 90
PILOT AVAILABILITY
A few places remain in the 10‑person pilot
OUR PROCESS
STEP 01
Listen and Define
Begin with the individual’s body, environment, routines, priorities, and existing equipment.
STEP 02
Measure and Model
Translate lived experience into dimensions, movements, attachment points, materials, fabrication requirements, and safety considerations.
STEP 03
Design Together
Use sketches, scanning, CAD, physical samples, and participant feedback to develop a shared direction.
STEP 04
Prototype and Refine
Fabricate, fit, test, and revise through two participant-led iterations. The first prototype is part of the conversation, not a finished answer. Clinical or technical review is included when appropriate.
STEP 05
Deliver and Learn
Complete the device, document the build, and gather feedback after 30 and 90 days. Each accepted project is supported through the full cycle.
DEVICES IN DEVELOPMENT
The following concepts are in development. Renderings show intended design directions, not completed devices.
Design visualization
Prototype in development
Design visualization
A resettable cushion would use interconnected silicone cells, foam pellets, a hand pump, and removable pads to form support around the body, then reshape it as needs change.
Challenge
A wheelchair user needs pressure support that can change as posture and pain shift throughout the day.
Proposed Device
A resettable cushion would use interconnected silicone cells, foam pellets, a hand pump, and removable pads to form support around the body, then reshape it as needs change.
Potential Difference
Adaptable positioning without replacing the entire cushion each time support needs change.
Prototype in development
Design visualization
AUGMENTATIVE CLOTHING
Challenge
A child with impaired motor signaling needs clearer feedback about the position and movement of their hips, knees, and ankles during gait training.
CURRENT SETUP
Physical therapy and available orthopedic systems do not provide a lightweight, adaptable way to analyze movement and deliver immediate physical cues throughout the gait cycle.
CO-DESIGNED DIRECTION
The Dynamic Gait Control (DGC) Wearable combines technologies adapted from professional VFX motion-capture suits with electronically controlled auxetic mechanisms and electrostimulation to create responsive augmentative clothing. An accelerometer sensor array embedded throughout the garment records the user’s gait, allowing the system to learn from individual movement patterns and introduce incremental corrections toward improved alignment. At precisely timed moments in the gait cycle, electrostimulation pads and auxetic zones vibrate, expand, and contract to cue when and how strongly specific muscles should activate. Together, these technologies are intended to help train and optimize gait by functioning as an external motor-control center for a user with impaired motor signaling.
PRACTICAL DIFFERENCE
More responsive and repeatable gait practice in a device designed to adapt as the body grows.
WEARABLE · THREE VIEWS
01 · GAIT SYSTEM
02 · MOTION CAPTURE
03 · ELECTROSTIMULATION
04 · AUXETIC STRUCTURES
Prototype in development
Design visualization
HEMI-WALKER SIT-TO-STAND SUPPORT
CHALLENGE
A wheelchair user with one functional arm cannot safely rise into or use a conventional hemi walker without physical assistance.
CURRENT SETUP
The wheelchair provides seated mobility, while the standard hemi walker assumes enough balance and leg strength to stand before using it. The transition between them remains unsupported.
CO-DESIGNED DIRECTION
Mechanical adaptations to a standard hemi walker would add rigidity and stabilize the standing motion while preserving one-handed control. Prototyping would focus on the transfer sequence, support geometry, portability, and compatibility with the participant’s home.
PRACTICAL DIFFERENCE
A safer path toward standing and short-distance movement, with less lifting for caregivers.
OPEN DOCUMENTATION
Built Once, Shared Further
With participant consent, successful projects will be documented as open fabrication packages. Depending on the build, these may include 3D models, print files and settings, parts lists, assembly instructions, toolpaths, license information, and safety documentation.
CONSENT + PRIVACY
Your Story Belongs to You
Participation never requires public disclosure of a diagnosis, identity, photograph, or personal story. Participants decide what may be shared, may participate anonymously, and can revisit consent. Open documentation can focus on the device without publishing personal information.