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Two Industrial Design students from the School of Art & Design, Shuoning (Stone) Shi and Yuheng (Leo) Wang, earned first place in the third annual Stretch Robot Pitch Competition held this past fall at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Their winning project, HYGI+, is a modular cleaning system designed to integrate with Stretch™, a mobile assistive robot, to enable advanced, multi-surface cleaning for individuals aging with disabilities.
The competition, sponsored by TechSAge RERC and Hello Robot, challenged students to develop hardware or software solutions that use Stretch’s capabilities—such as reaching, grasping, and sensing—to support independent living. Emphasizing human-centered design, students engaged with older adults and received guidance from Georgia State University Occupational Therapy doctoral students to ensure real-world relevance.
Shi and Wang’s innovation stood out among 20 participants representing eight departments across the College of Applied Health Sciences, Grainger College of Engineering, and the School of Art & Design. Along with a $1,000 cash prize, the duo will have the opportunity to further develop their concept in partnership with researchers at the McKechnie Family Life Home.
Read the full story and view all winning projects at the TechSAge RERC website article: Illinois Students Compete in Robotics Competition to Support Older Adults with Disabilities.