Enhancing Senior Mobility

As the medical system struggles to keep up with the aging population, seniors are encouraged to take preventative healthcare measures by being more physically active. Engaging in physical activities not only promotes physical fitness, but also contributes to mental health and can reduce loneliness if physical activities are conducted in group settings. Unfortunately, many seniors struggle to be physically active, which can have detrimental health outcomes and further burden the medical system. The goal of this thesis project was to develop a product that enhances seniors’ mobility to make exercise more appealing and accessible. Interviews, surveys, and user observations were used to study seniors’ lifestyles, physical abilities, and interests. The most prominent themes were used to develop a design solution. Once a preliminary concept was developed, the feasibility and ergonomics of the design were evaluated. Initially, this project focused on enhancing outdoor physical activities for seniors and began with research on outdoor products, but it slowly transitioned into an effort to enhance senior mobility in general to encourage seniors to participate in a variety of physical activities. The resulting product has the potential to revolutionize seniors’ exercise, improve the quality of life of seniors', and significantly reduce the current burden on the healthcare industry. Keywords: Seniors, physical activity, health, ergonomics, body brace