Muscular dystrophy gives Nick Torrance added challenges at Pickney Community High School in Pickney, Michigan. But opening his locker is no longer one of them, thanks to the mechanical ingenuity of fellow students Micah Stuhldreher and Wyatt Smrcka. Nick can now wave his hand over a sensor on his wheelchair whenever he needs to open or close his locker:
They were told to tear off a locker door and figure out a way to open and close it. They originally installed a relay inside the locker, but it took up too much space, so they switched to a computer.
They originally used a key fob to activate the robotic device, which opened the locker, but they said Torrance wasn’t strong enough to press the button. So they switched to a sensor.
The two students won a $1,500 minigrant from the Society of American Military Engineers so other devices can be made.
Both plan to pursue robotics as a career.
(Photo: Gillis Benedict/Daily Press & Argus)