Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Fig. 8.1 Orthotic exoskeleton system devised to assist a person with spinal cord injury
8.5 Logistics
To build a successful foundation, YokyWorks has developed mechanisms for
identifying and recruiting volunteers, managing teams of disparately located
volunteers, funding development efforts, managing liability issues, and assur-
ing intellectual property rights to sustain the organization.
8.5.1 Identifying and Recruiting Volunteers
One of the pleasant surprises while putting together YokyWorks was that
a large perceived potential hurdle was easier to solve than expected. This is
not to say that finding volunteers, identifying the particular skill sets required
and keeping those individuals engaged over the course of a project is not chal-
lenging. It was anticipated that finding qualified people to perform testing,
evaluation, engineering, and project management work on a volunteer basis
could prove an insurmountable obstacle - these were busy professionals that
had every reason to expect compensation for their services. The challenge was
to identify skilled people interested in philanthropically providing service to
people with disabilities through application of their unique skills.
In addition to finding a pool of skilled volunteers, there is the challenge
of assigning from this pool people with the appropriate skill set to work
on a particular project. It is clear that the skill sets of the people working
on a problem will have an enormous impact on the nature of the solutions
pursued. A physical therapist may be more inclined to pursue rehabilitative
solutions while a mechanical engineer may look for augmentative solutions.
Thus, developing a project team requires some early stage brainstorming of
probable solutions, conceiving the largest technical roadblocks to achieving
those solutions, and identifying the skill sets needed to address those chal-
lenges. Because each new project requires a unique combination of skills,
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