Innovation is the power to think beyond the impossible. When her uncle, a Parkinson patient expressed his bitter experience of the inability of drinking his coffee in public due to the fear of spilling it during massive tremors, Mileha Soneji a product designer was urged to think beyond and innovate.
She came up with a creative idea of designing a NoSpill cup that would equip a Parkinson patient to enjoy their drink without any fear of embarrassment, a solution that would make the experience of drinking coffee or climbing stairs, as simple as it sounds. This innovation made life much easier for Parkinson patients giving them the feeling of being treated as a normal person.
NoSpill cup:
This cup is designed in a way that a Parkinson patient will not spill their drink even though they are experiencing massive tremors. The curve on top deflects the liquid back inside every time a person has tremors and keeps the liquid inside. The idea was to create something that can be used by every normal person so that patients do not feel self-conscious of using a cup that is specially designed for them. The cup is made of plastic and is made in such a way that the liquid does not spill out as it reflects back into the cup due to its form. Thus, the problem of spilling has been solved by just simply changing the form of the cup.
Staircase Illusion:
Another interesting fact that Mileha noticed in her uncle was that he was able to walk stairs easily however he feared walking on plain surfaces. This again, got her wondering what could be the reason for this. On researching, she realized that it's because it's a continuous motion. Another man who also suffers from the same symptoms and uses a walker, but the moment he is put on a cycle, all his symptoms vanish because it is a continuous motion. So the key was to translate this feeling of walking on a staircase back to flat land. This gave birth to her simple but effective innovation; the Staircase Illusion.
The Staircase Illusion is a simple print on the floor that gives them the continuous movement that they need to maneuver around freely in their homes, making them independent and confident. The solution was not to use some high-end technology but human-centered methods that were simple and basic. As a designer, Mileha could use projection or Google glass but she stuck to keeping it simple that gave her the best results. The Staircase Illusion can be placed in all rooms of the house and can also be used in hospitals that boost the patients’ confidence.
A clear sense of empathy and a mind full of creative thoughts that were waiting to take root, Mileha made a Parkinson patients’ life simpler than it could possibly be. To find a simple solution to a complicated problem and her belief that technology is not always the solution is what motivated Mileha Soneji to feel, plan and then innovate.
