Speaker: Some assistive devices leave a special impression. Especially when they enable people to do vital things independently again that were previously only possible with the help of others. HIDREX GmbH distributes some of them. A current highlight is the Obi robot, an adaptive eating device.
Ralf Hornscheidt: The advantages of Obi are primarily that it enables people who can no longer feed themselves to eat independently, to make their own decisions: At what pace do I eat?
Speaker: To enable the robot to serve the food, its arm is pulled once to where the spoon is supposed to stop in front of the mouth. The "Teach" button saves the position. Then the person who wants to eat can select one of the four bowls using two large buttons and start or stop the arm. Alternatively, the robot can be operated via a head control with buttons. The reactions to the food robot show how much it can positively influence everyday life.
Ralf Hornscheidt: Most reactions are a little reserved at first, because they think: "Now we're taking away even more personal contact and I have a machine that's doing something for me." And once they've done it themselves, you see a lot of smiles on the patients' faces because they can suddenly eat alone again – as a couple and not in two shifts. And the nursing staff also notice very quickly what advantages it brings both for the patients and for themselves. This also frees up times when the caregivers can act and communicate with the people they care for in a completely different way
Speaker: This carbon hand helps people to grasp objects firmly again. It is particularly useful after strokes, nerve, muscle and tremor disorders.
Ralf Hornscheidt: The carbon hand has four sensors in the glove that I put on. The sensors detect whether the fingers should grip and how strongly they should grip. The patient can also set this himself/herself using an app. Which finger should react where and how. You can save three different profiles, call them up directly on the hand and thus achieve a secure grip again.
Speaker: HIDREX sells different devices for aided communication, which are equipped with new possibilities.
Ali Gündüz: The trends in Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) are definitely social media, because assisted communication is actually for people who can't speak. On the one hand, there is the close communication with the person who is opposite me. But there's also long-distance communication. With long-distance communication, we talk about Twitter, about a video call, for example, if the relatives are a bit further away. That's a quick way to get on there. Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, that's all possible with AAC. Environmental control also plays a role, because the users of communication aids also want to control their environment, for example, to switch the TV or turn the lights on and off. Or if they want to go through the door with their wheelchair, they need a door drive.
Speaker: Supplementary accessories and special conversions are manufactured in the company's own workshop. This is because assistive devices often have to be individually adapted to the different requirements of the users.
Ali Gündüz: In the case of the communication aid, this often concerns the surface processing. You have communication software on it, but you have to figure out: Does the person need finger guidance or do you actually have to redesign the software interface? If the conditions, let's say, become more frequent in several patients, then we adapt our standard products accordingly.
Speaker: When HIDREX GmbH adds aids for rehab needs to its repertoire, managing director Andreas Kämper's main concern is that they are efficient and demand-oriented.
Andreas Kämper: We try to avoid products that are brought to market for purely promotional reasons or driven only by innovation. Instead, they should really serve their purpose, while also being economical, easy to use and understandable.
