1/1/2024 0 Comments Thomas panzarellaAs a result, technology for home-centered approaches to healthcare, such as the proposed system, are necessary. It is estimated that adding a single month of independence and health to America?s elder population would save $5 billion, while decreasing hospitalization and institutionalization 10% would save $50 billion annually. This impact can be moderated in part by enabling individuals to maintain their independence and live at home longer. Economically, a serious side effect of the rapidly growing elder population, to over 70 million by 2030, is that it will place unprecedented strains on the U.S. Leveraging robotics for personal mobility can help Americans with disabilities to participate fully in basic activities such as employment, education, worship, recreation, and other activities of community life often taken for granted. Socially, it will have a direct positive effect on the quality of life and independence of the elderly and disabled. The broader impact/commercial potential of this project will have significant impacts in the U.S. The team will exploit their experience in commercializing smart-EPW technologies (including acquiring FDA approval), and will apply the knowledge they have gained in developing autonomous driving solutions through their participation in the DARPA Urban Challenge. This exteroceptive sensing capability is enabled by leveraging the latest in 3D imaging technology. The innovation is that as an individual begins to lose cognitive, perceptive, or motor function ? due to age, injury, or disease ? the system can augment that loss because it can interpret the user?s intent and it can ?see? out into the environment on their behalf. The goal of the project is to enable active, safe, and independent living. Additionally, the system allows for higher-level path planning and the autonomous execution of non-linear routes of travel in a safe and efficient manner. It uses intelligent sensing and drive control systems that work in cooperation with the driver to aid in negotiating changing terrain, avoiding obstacles/ collisions, and maintaining a straight path. After being told that nopales, or cactus pads, were in demand, a neighbor delivered a large batch of living cactus found growing in the area.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project proposes to develop and commercialize an active driving aid that enables semi-autonomous, cooperative navigation of an electric-powered wheelchair (EPW) both indoors and in dynamic, outdoor environments. To continue their commitment to being a farm for their surrounding community, the brothers take suggestions on what produce locals would like to purchase. They offer memberships that come with a 50 percent discount on produce to locals that complete four out of eight possible tasks, such as bringing in yard waste or attending a Super Neighborhood meeting. To avoid becoming simply a farm supplying chic local restaurants, Finca Tres Robles has made it their mission to sell the majority of their fruits and vegetables to folks in the 77011 area code. The brothers speak specifically about tracking their water usage so that they can be independent from the city's water supply, with talk of sensors being installed in the future along crop rows to monitor moisture levels. "When you have numbers and data, it makes you more conscious and you can use the data to develop your goals," says Daniel. Daniel's expertise and engineering background lend the project a focus on data and good recordkeeping. and Nicaragua, and Daniel in medical-supply production and oil and gas manufacturing. The brothers come from divergent professional backgrounds, with Thomas having spent the last five years working at farms in the U.S. Their methods include a variety of sustainable practices - no tilling, rain water collection, the use of plant guilds (plants that complement each other's nutritional needs). The brothers Garcia-Prats have a deal with a local business that's leasing them their odd-shaped 1.25-acre lot at an affordable rate for a minimum of 3 years. The access to vacant land has been an issue this past year, with Houston's booming real estate market coming at odds with growing operations, like the community garden lost to townhouses in Midtown. "Agriculture needs to be included in the discussion of urban planning and design, especially as the city grows." "Older cities don't have the luxury of vacant land that Houston does," says Thomas Garcia-Prats.
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