(Updated: March 4, 2019-BiKube is now available to the public.)
After three years of development, the BiKube, a revolutionary mobility assistive device, is making its debut as of March 2019.
The BiKube is a new hands-free, indoor mobility device that combines sleek design with functionality to help people with mobility challenges maintain their autonomy, stability and independence while navigating tight spaces around their home.
Working closely with Entrepreneur Jean-Pierre Berger, the BCIT MAKE+ team successfully completed all necessary research and product development to launch BiKube.
The transformation of a vision into reality
As a volunteer driver during the Paralympic Games in Vancouver in 2010, Jean-Pierre saw first hand and became more aware of the mobility issues some people faced when performing daily activities that able bodied individuals take for granted. His awareness of the issue further deepened while volunteering with Wheelchair Rugby athletes.
As well, when his father-in-law turned 90 and was recommended the use of a walker but refused for a full year to use it, Jean-Pierre was drawn towards the issue again.
In his father-in-law’s perception, it was too medical, it looked bad and most of all, it hurt his pride. It was all the right reasons not to give in.
Then Jean-Pierre had a serious motorcycle accident that directly impacted and limited his mobility. This accident made him realize that there was a urgent need for something more practical and user-friendly than a walker or a wheelchair within the home.
Looking for a solution, he found out that there was some attempts at solving the problem with prototypes and devices being developed in Italy, Germany and France. But none were entirely satisfactory until Jean-Pierre reached out to the BCIT MAKE+ team for help.
BCIT Project Leader Gordon Thiessen’s background in mechanics and robotics came in handy as they worked together bring the complex device to fruition. The resulting product is a testament to Jean-Pierre’s ambitious vision and opens up a whole new frontier within the mobility assistance market.
SEE MORE: BCIT MAKE+ brings inventor’s vision to life with safer, quicker, easier way to plug in
“It was really exciting to see the development from start to finish and experience the challenges that come along with developing a new product,” explained Gordon.
“MAKE+ works with our clients to provide product development leadership services,” said MAKE+ Director, Nancy Paris. “In some cases, this entails product design, fabrication, and evaluation, however it may also include the applied research necessary to determine what the problem is that the client is trying to solve to begin with. We work under a design control system that ensures we create a product that solves a problem and is also commercially viable.”
Supporting those who need a BiKube
BiKube encourages you to make a charitable donation to help those in need of a mobility assistive device. For every $500 donated, a BiKube will be donated to the Spondylitis Association of America or to a low income person who might need it.
Note to media: Gordon Thiessen and Jean-Pierre Berger are available to speak on how this project came to reality. Please contact Amy Chen, 778-384-7245.
ABOUT BCIT MAKE+
The BCIT MAKE+ program empowers entrepreneurs to turn their ideas into reality. This multi-disciplinary Applied Research group (out of the Centre for Applied Research and Innovation) supports businesses of all sizes from the research phase through to product refinement. MAKE+ is comprised of a diverse team of engineers, technologists, industrial designers, manufacturing specialists, and project managers.
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