University of Puerto Rico

David Serrano

Mauricio A Lizama

Santiago Duque

Jos&eacute; Soto

Yi Jia

Mauricio Anibal Lizama Troncoso

Mauricio Ambal Lizama Troncoso

Jose J Mayi

Joel Rivera

Gustavo E Frank-Ayala

Lorenzo Detres

Fredrick A Just

Raul Jordan

Eilleen Aviles

Ke Sun

Victor M Valentin

Nestor M Martinez

Manuel Toledo-Quiñones

Felix J Santana Lopez

A mechanical adaptation to a vehicle power window controls is provided that require less hand/finger coordination and less force to actuate, therefore becoming useful for persons with limited control of their hands (e.g., arthritis, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, and spinal cord injury, among others). A power window control includes four levers, one on each control switch. Two of the levers are long and the other two are shorter. The long levers are provided on the two switches further away from the user (which control the front and rear left side windows). The short levers are attached to the two switches closer to the user (which control the front and rear right side windows). The base of each lever can be attached to the corresponding switch through a heavy-duty double-sided tape, where for flat switches, the lever is attached directly to the switch surface and for contoured switches, an adapter can be provided between the base of the lever and the surface of the power window switch.

Adapted power window switch assembly and retrofit kit

A bathing chair which has a water-spraying function for simultaneously effecting a shower discharge from each of a plurality of shower discharge ends and thus assist a person with severe disabilities while cleansing him or herself or while being assisted by a third person. The bathing chair including strategically located nozzles to wash critical body parts, a main control system with manual and electro-mechanical operated valves, two main flow paths with independent control systems, means for combining a soap product and water, a water temperature sensor, and a pump/reservoir system for water pressure adjustment.

Integrated showering and body support system

A high sensitivity strain sensor that utilizes a micro-scale cavity built in a multi-layer structure, with a pair of interdigitalized capacitor incorporated on one of the layers, is described in this document. The device's capacitance changes produced by unattended deformations of the cavity can be used to measure the associated strain without using any movable electrodes. The sensor can be remotely energized from a radio frequency wave sent by a reader antenna to construct a battery-free wireless instrument. Changes on the sensor's resonant frequency are remotely detected so that a strain level is measured from fluctuations in the received signal. This detection method provides a simple, reliable and sensitive technique to measure small strain changes down to the pico-scale. Materials with a highly strain-dependant permittivity are integrated in the sensor to enhance its sensitivity. The proposed sensor consists of a simple planar structure. It can be used as the main component on low-cost, accurate and highly stable strain measuring instruments capable of monitoring very small strain levels. Furthermore, the sensor is passive, may be operated wirelessly, and can, thus, be used for remote long-term embedded strain detection.

High sensitivity passive wireless strain sensor

The present invention contemplates an improved ball ramp assembly that enables even the most severely handicapped bowler to guide and accelerate a bowling ball toward the intended bowling pins. The bowling ramp assembly includes a ramp having a ball guide defining a ball path along the ramp, a base coupled to a proximal end of the ramp for supporting the ramp, a ball release coupled to the ramp for selectively controlling travel of the ball along the ramp, and a positioning assembly coupled to the ramp for adjusting the orientation of the ramp. The ball release includes a ball stopping member that moves between a ball blocking position and a ball releasing position. The positioning assembly includes at least one motor coupled to the ramp and a wheel located at the distal end of the ramp. The ball release and positioning assembly are both controlled by switches which may be located remotely from the ramp.

Ball ramp assembly

A merry-go-round with a frame supported for rotation by a plurality of driven wheels, the merry-go-round having a space for a wheel chair and a space for a non-wheel chair bound person. Each separate space on the merry-go-round is associated with a respective crank assembly such that a person in that space can drive one of the driven wheels through a crank. A plurality of smaller wheels secured to the underside of the frame provide additional support for the merry-go-round. The person in the non-wheel chair bound space can stand on the frame, or in an alternate embodiment can sit on a chair. Because the merry-go-round has spaces for both wheel chairs and non-wheel chair bound people, both can use the merry-go-round at the same time.

Merry-go-round for wheel chairs

Growing community of inventors

San Juan, Puerto Rico

David Serrano