Recent University of South Florida (USF) biomedical sciences graduate and member of the Judy Genshaft Honors College, Rohitram Upendram has a wide array of interests. A violin and piano player, he enjoys covering instrumental film and gaming music, working on creative fiction set in the Star Wars universe, challenging his sister to matches of badminton, swimming, and traveling with his parents. Upendram is also an accomplished inventor, having already secured two provisional patents while still a student at USF.
FROM INJURY TO OPPORTUNITY
Inspired by a knee injury he sustained while volunteering in a hospital, Upendram’s
latest invention is a medical brace that elevates the leg to alleviate pain and improve
blood flow.
On his last day shadowing a cardiothoracic surgeon while working in South Dakota,
Upendram fell and injured his leg. As he traveled home from South Dakota to Florida,
he struggled with the inconvenience and practical realities of the injury.
While waiting to board his flight at the airport he searched for a place to elevate
his leg to relieve the pain and swelling, but his makeshift leg rest, comprised mainly
of suitcases and whatever else was at hand, was not sturdy enough to support his ankle.
“I realized I needed a better, sustainable way to elevate my leg over long periods
of time,” said Upendram.
This uncomfortable moment inspired Upendram to design a brace that has a built-in
stand to prop up leg injuries.
Immediately, Upendram began jotting down his ideas and scribbling sketches on paper.
He cycled through countless design ideas, such as a bubble that went around the knee,
but ultimately realized that he had to consider the ergonomics of the entire leg,
not just the site of the injury.
“Necessity is the mother of invention,” joked Upendram on his inspiration and the
refinement of the idea.
As he progressed developing his idea into a tangible mechanical design, Upendram found
himself drawing on his experiences in robotics club at his high school. After each
successive sketch he would show his designs to his sister for feedback and he eventually
settled on a design with two prongs that can be attached accordingly to the sites
of injury and can extend from the ankle all the way to the knee.
INSPIRED BY THE WORLD AROUND HIM
Working though the patent process for this medical device was relatively straight forward for Upendram as it wasn’t his first invention to be approved for a patent. His previous invention, a ladder that allows firefighters to quickly descend in emergencies, was also inspired by observation and an interest in creative problem solving.
“I was watching a movie with my family and in it a fireman was trying to bring down
several people from a burning building and carrying important objects at the same
time ... and he was struggling,” observed Upendram. “I came up with a lever design,
where all the steps of the ladder turn parallel ... it basically turns into a slide.”
Drawing inspiration from his family of health care professionals, Upendram aims to
pursue his passion for medical innovation and improving the lives of others by developing
a prototype for the brace with the support of USF's research and innovation resources.
Moving forward, Upendram plans to adapt his design for use with arm injuries and to
grow the project with other USF students to produce a proper prototype that can eventually
be used in hospitals.
“We won’t know what’s wrong with it until we put in the prototype. We will certainly
have to go back to step one and fix things,” said Upendram.
When reflecting on his journey to obtaining the provisional patent for his design,
Upendram described it as a cumulative process that drew from his clinical volunteering
experience, time in robotics as well as, personal experiences. According to Upendram,
this experience taught him the importance of looking beyond himself in order to see
needs in the community that need to be met.
Upendram's advice for other students trying to make a difference:
“Identify a need in your community. Whatever you experience, find a need and see how
you can make a solution. Get involved with other things and community experiences.”