Over the past academic year, Athena Reissis, a PhD student on the Medical Imaging CDT, has served as the project lead for Project Impactive, a student-led initiative delivered through the UCL Students’ Union. Below is Athena’s summary of the project’s key activities and achievements throughout the year.
Project Impactive is a student-led initiative dedicated to developing affordable, meaningful assistive technology for disabled individuals. This year, we launched seven unique projects in partnership with GDI Hub, Headlines, Riverside, and UCL’s Digital Accessibility Hub. Each project is co-designed with users, addressing real needs through direct collaboration, thorough research, and iterative prototyping. From custom bicycle helmets for children to home call systems for care home residents, the designs are driven by empathy and practicality. Over 30 student engineers and designers volunteered their time, supported by five expert mentors from academia and industry, to ensure the solutions are user-driven and impactful.
Beyond the design work, Project Impactive has reignited a culture of engagement and innovation. We hosted a “Tech in Disability” talk with inspiring speakers from REMAP, GDI Hub, and Envision, as well as collaborative design workshops and feedback events. Weekly team check-ins, mentor sessions, and user visits have strengthened both project outcomes and community bonds. Most importantly, our work this year has made people with disabilities feel seen and heard, and reminded our volunteers that engineering can and should create real-world change. As we approach final prototype presentations, the energy and purpose behind Project Impactive continue to grow. Our users have already shown great appreciation with the work we are doing, some already in hold of the final product for them to already enhance their day to day lives.
We were honoured to be short listed this year for the UCL SU awards for ‘Best Student Lead Project’ as well as Athena Reissis being personally nominated for ‘Leader in Social Impact Award’ and we look forward to bringing positive change in the coming years.
Do join us next academic year to create even more positive change.
For each of our projects this academic year, the Group Leads has written a summary of their project and what they have achieved:
Hand mobility - bottle opener for people with Apert syndrome:
Our team focused on designing an assistive device to help individuals with Apert Syndrome open water bottles independently. We used a user-centred design approach, developing and testing four prototypes. Our final design (Prototype 4) is found to be the most effective, utilising arm and wrist strength for superior performance.
Custom bicycle helmet for people with Apert syndrome:
As part of Project Impactive, my team and I have been working on designing a custom-fit bicycle helmet for a child with Apert Syndrome, a craniofacial condition that makes traditional helmets uncomfortable or unsafe. Our approach uses a standard outer shell combined with a 3D-printed inner liner tailored to the user’s head shape using scan data. We’ve explored impact-absorbing mesh structures, breathable materials, and accessible strap systems to allow for protection and comfort. It’s been an incredible opportunity to apply engineering to real-world healthcare challenges while co-designing with the user and their family.
Shower chair for wheelchair users:
As part of my work on Project Impactive, I have been focused on developing a portable shower chair prototype specifically designed for individuals who use wheelchairs. This project has followed a user-centred design process, combining principles of axiomatic co-design with low-cost prototyping techniques. By exploring various folding mechanisms and evaluating their structural feasibility, I aimed to create a prototype that future volunteers can continue to enhance, ultimately leading to a product that is both functional and user-friendly. Working on this project has been an extraordinary opportunity, allowing me to develop a range of skills I previously lacked. This experience has not only improved my technical abilities but has also played a significant role in my personal and professional growth.
Wheelchair handlebars for people in a residential home:
My team and I have been working on designing and prototyping a horizontal handlebar attachment to improve weight distribution and ergonomic comfort for manual wheelchair users. This attachment is intended to reduce upper body strain during propulsion by promoting a more natural wrist and shoulder posture, as well as even weight distribution. The design process has prioritised adaptability, meaning that the handlebar can be easily adjusted to accommodate a range of wheelchair dimensions. The second step of this project will involve making the device height-adjustable for even more customisation. This project has been a valuable chance to apply user-centred design in a hands-on setting, while also tackling real constraints like adjustability, durability, and replicability.
Wheelchair cover for people at a residential home:
For our project, we worked on a detachable cover to protect elderly wheelchair users from rain, in collaboration with the Esther Randall Court Assisted Living Residence. Our team consisted of three Biomedical Engineering students - since we were all from the same course, we had all worked with one another on course-related projects in the labs previously, but it was a really nice and different experience for us to be able to work together on a hands-on, real-world project, helping real people. The experience was incredibly valuable for us, not just on the technical side, allowing us to improve our skills in CAD, design, and manual construction, but also in terms of personal experience whilst interacting with our users - we visited the elderly residents at Esther Randall court numerous times, and it was a great experience for us getting to engage with our users and think about their needs from a first-hand perspective. It was a greatly valuable experience for us, and really gave us insight into the work we aspire to do as Biomedical Engineers later on in our careers.
An alert system for people at a residential home to alert staff members:
In this project, we developed a prototype for a wireless alert system tailored to the needs of care home residents and staff at Esther Randall Court. While the residents are equipped with emergency pendant alert systems, there was a clear need for a non-emergency call system to allow residents to request assistance from staff in the shared lounge/seating areas. Through interviews and collaboration with both residents and staff, certain key requirements were identified, such as ease of use, accessibility, and location-specific notifications.
The final prototype was made using ESP32 microcontrollers that communicated wirelessly between sender and receiver units via the ESP-NOW protocol. The receiver had an LCD screen, buzzer, and staff feedback system, while the sender device had multiple push buttons. To assist residents with limited mobility, we attempted to include a voice activation option using the Gravity Voice Recognition Module.
The prototype was low-cost, responsive, and simple to use and maintain.
Resource tool finding system for students and staff at UCL:
Our project focuses on enhancing the accessibility of UCL’s student triage and referral tool, which helps students locate key support services and resources. By analysing the current system and collecting feedback through student surveys and testing, we aim to identify usability barriers — particularly for users with disabilities or those unfamiliar with university services. The outcome will include a list of accessibility improvements and an app prototype that better supports inclusive and intuitive access to student resources.
