- I Rise Mechanics 357, founded by Lubomir Vassilev, created the Omnibot Verticalizator, a revolutionary device enabling those with lower limb mobility challenges to stand, move, and work independently.
- I Rise, Mechanics received recognition for their innovation, winning the Best Social Impact Startup award.
- Omnibot's transformative technology promises to enhance the lives of many with lower limb mobility issues.
Once upon a time, a lady traveling by train met with an accident. She was thrown out of the train while resisting a robbery, because of which she lost her left leg. This isn't a fictional story. This woman is Arunima Sinha. She decided to become a mountaineer after the incident, and so she did become one.
Life brings its twists and turns unexpectedly. One may never know when any mishap can happen and what kind and level of health injury it would cause. People become specially abled for life, and if it is at an early age, it makes it more difficult.
History of I Rise Mechanics 357
The story behind the high-tech company I Rise Mechanics 357 is painful. It was established in Sofiya, Grand Sofia, Bulgaria, in November 2016, and became a gift to the world. The founder and CEO, Lubomir Vassilev, dedicates I Rise to his wife, Silvia. His wife lost her lower limb mobility and was meant to use a wheelchair to meet her daily needs. She missed enjoying Christmas and going out with her daughters.
So, to ease her life and make her enjoy Christmas like she used to, he invented the Omnibot Verticalizator. It's a tech device enabling people with lower limb mobility to stand, move, and work on tasks. It made the dream of people in wheelchairs ever walking or roaming comfortably come true.
Statistics
According to the, I Rise research team, lower limbs become immobile in between 250,000 and 500,000 cases yearly. The age of those who experience such situations is 39.5 years on average. Most of these individuals lead active lifestyles and are of working age.
Vertebral injuries take a prolonged time to recover, sometimes lasting for a lifetime. A wheelchair is considered to support them, but it mostly requires someone to move them to other places. Wheelchair enhances the percentage of seating time for the person, making him/her prone to other diseases like osteoporosis, heart disease, and many others.
How does it help?
A robotic tool, Omnibot, enables their movement. One can easily reach the objects kept on kitchen cabinets and other hard-to-reach places with a hand. It is omnidirectional, allowing movement in all directions, like up, down, forward, backward, sideways, and even turning. It even enables movement in narrow corridor spaces.
Omnibot allows users to move between pieces of furniture, stand, and roam with ease. It allows for smooth movement within constrained worlds, like a wand's wave controls space. Its small size and has the magical ability to disappear under automobile trunks make reaching higher or deeper a breeze.
The device makes the person feel comfortable, reduces the chances of health risks, and even makes them feel more socially included than before. Imagine Omnibot as the jacket of the transformer. The transformers change their form completely, changing from a car to a robot to others. Similarly, Omnibot transforms your seating form into a motion form.
Love for the Innovation
I Rise Mechanics 357 JSC has raised €300K in funding over two rounds. Their latest funding was raised from a Seed round on March 3, 2018.
I Rise Mechanics was awarded the Best Social Impact Startup under the Central Europe Startup Awards. They have practically implemented the two main concepts, which are accessibility for all and accessibility vs. inclusivity.
An article for I Rise published under Design for All Bulgaria Foundation quoted Stephen Hawking, "There must be something very special about the boundaries of the universe. And what, in particular, is the claim that there are no boundaries? There should be no limits to human effort. We are all different. As bad as life looks, there is always something to succeed in. While there is life, there is hope."
I Rise Mechanics has developed an inclusive and innovative solution using the technology. The transformer- Omnibot would be transforming every person's life with lower limb mobility in the coming decade, and they would also feel as valuable members of society as they used to.
Edited by Shruti Thapa
