Senior Design Projects to Aid the Disabled: The University of Toledo Experience

This paper describes the experience of the Department of Mechanical, Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (MIME) at the University of Toledo (UT) during the past five years in supporting its senior students in developing custom designed devices for physically disabled individuals within the Toledo community. The goal of these projects is to assist disabled individuals to enjoy life and to reach toward their maximum potential. These projects significantly enhance the education of student engineers through the experience of designing and building devices to meet a real need with feedback on how well the device satisfies that need.