Improving Mobility for Children with Cerebral Palsy

Cole Galloway, a physical therapy professor, and Sunil Agrawal, a mechanical engineering professor, both at University of Delaware, joined forces in 2007 to improve mobility for children suffering from conditions like cerebral palsy. Initial results combining Galloway’s knowledge of infant behavior and Agrawal’s engineering skills produced devices that were both heavy and prohibitively expensive for most families. However, an idea came to Galloway during a trip to Toy ‘R’ Us that solved both of these problems.

 

Instead of focusing on robotics, as they had been doing, the team thought, why not try developing something closer to a toy. Go Baby Go was the result of this ‘aha’ moment. By retrofitting the Go Baby Go system onto rideable toy cars that already exist, Galloway and Agrawal were able to significantly lower the price. Not only is the toy fun for the children who them , it also assists with brain development and helps drive the exploratory nature of the child. Increased mobility can also help make children more social.

Go Baby Go has started small, and there are still nearly a half million children in the US that experience problems with mobility, but their work has only just begun. Now is the time to spread the word so Go Baby Go can help children go forward in their development and their lives.