Genny is the first medical self-balanced device of this kind – with what goals in mind was it developed and how does it differ from other devices?
Francesca Belotti: Genny™ was born from the intuition of Paolo Badano, a businessman who, due to a road accident, has been using his wheelchair for over twenty years now. Following the accident, over the years, Paolo looked for a way to improve his daily mobility but couldn’t find anything able to make him break away from the usual schemes.
Wheelchairs not only seemed constraining and often aesthetically arguable but had a clearly obsolete technology as well. Only in 2009, Segway PT, a self-balancing ride equipped with only two wheels, conceived by Dean Kamen, and produced by Segway inc., drew his attention. The Segway imposes a standing position on its user. So, Paolo’s idea was to make this technology available to the "seated people" (a term often used by Paolo to define motor disabilities):
Genny™ was born, his first ambitious project, with its primary obligation to ensure the users’ safety. On the market, Genny™ stands out as a unique medical device. Today Genny™ has a big new challenge to create a new product that is even more technologically developed, safe, and affordable to as many people as possible.