Fleo pen for people with Parkinson’s | Fusion - WeRIndia

Parkinson’s disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder which affects the movement of a person. More than 10 million people in the world are living with this condition. James Parkinson, a British physician had written about the symptoms of the disease in 1817.

Tremors in the hands are one of the most common symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. As a result, the person cannot perform daily tasks easily.

To help people with Parkinson’s, Ashwathy Satheesa designed a stabilizing pen, Fleo. This 23-year-old girl is a graduate from the National Institute of Design (NID), Ahmedabad.

Fleo helps people write and draw without any problem.

She received the James Dyson Award 2019 for her innovation, Fleo.

She visited many hospitals and public places while designing the pen. She wanted her design to be an aid to the people who live with Parkinson’s.

Ashwathy had been interested in arts and crafts since her childhood. However, after class 11, she began to look at design as a possible subject. She joined NID.

In her third year of graduation, Ashwathy started working on a project which led to the creation of Fleo.

She said that NID always encouraged students to take up topics that were important and impactful to society.

Ashwathy started working on Fleo when she found that people with Parkinson’s find it difficult to perform simple tasks like writing and signing their name.

Fleo works on gyroscopic principles. It resists the tremors so that people can write in a controlled way.

Fleo is battery-operated and rechargeable.

It is comfortable to use and provides a confident grip to the user.

Ashwathy regularly visited a Parkinson’s club in Ahmedabad and met several people who had the condition during her research. She received valuable input and modified her design accordingly.

Image Reference: Thebetterindia