Co-designed by two UNSW engineering students alongside clinicians and Tyree IHealthE engineers through Taste of Innovation, Rehabit is a gamified rehabilitation system now in use at Prince of Wales Hospital
UNSW biomedical engineering students Paige Tinyow and Raymond Liu developed Rehabit, a low-cost, gamified rehabilitation system designed to make repetitive therapy more engaging for patients. Through Tyree IHealthE’s Taste of Innovation program, the pair worked alongside clinicians and engineers to develop a prototype now in use at the Prince of Wales Hospital Rehabilitation Gym.
Their project recently received a $20,000 prize from UNSW Justice Inclusion Access (JEINA) through the Peter Farrell Cup, supporting its next stage of development.
Raymond: I’m a fourth-year Mechanical Engineering student at UNSW. My primary role in Rehabit was designing the handles that retrofit onto the handbikes in the rehab gym, along with other physical components such as testing jigs and the moulds for the silicone grips.
Paige: I’m currently in my final year of studying Software Engineering and Biomedical Engineering at UNSW. I've been responsible for the software development of Rehabit, particularly designing and building the interactive games that integrate with the handle.
Both: Rehabit came about from an engagement challenge that clinicians at Prince of Wales Rehabilitation gym were seeing with their patients on the handbike. When we first started, we roughly knew where to begin, but not what mattered most. Going down to the gym, chatting with the clinicians, and watching how patients used the handbike gave us a lot of insight.
Combined with mentorship from experienced engineers at IHealthE, who helped us identify the key elements needed, gave us a clear direction on how to approach the solution.
Raymond: For me, developing Rehabit has been a unique learning experience that’s let me do so many things I wouldn’t normally get the chance to. Working with clinicians taught me about their perspective, their workflow, and what they value.
Working alongside my engineering mentors at IHealthE taught me a lot about professional practice, but more importantly, the mindset I think an engineer should have, which includes always thinking of ways to add to the solution beyond what is strictly necessary for it to work.
Paige: Developing Rehabit has been an incredibly valuable learning experience, particularly because it allowed me to apply my engineering knowledge to a real clinical problem. Collaborating closely with clinicians allowed me to see the project from a different perspective, especially the importance of usability. Alongside the guidance and mentorship from the engineers at IHealthE, I was able to further develop my technical and professional skills. More importantly, they encouraged me to think beyond conventional approaches and explore creative solutions to problems, which has shaped the way I now approach engineering challenges.
Raymond: What surprised me most is how far Paige and I were able to bring Rehabit, from nothing at the start of the year to a working prototype, and now moving towards becoming a standalone product. After this experience my perspective has changed on the impact I can have with a bit of passion and some guidance to point it in the right direction.
Paige: The most rewarding part has been seeing Rehabit being used in a clinical environment, where it has the potential to make a direct impact on patients throughout their rehabilitation journey.
What surprised me the most was how much the project has evolved beyond its original scope. I never imagined that an engineering project would open up the opportunity to explore creating a startup and compete in the PFC.
It has been an exciting experience that has encouraged me to think beyond the technical aspects of engineering and consider how our work could be developed into something with a much broader impact.
Both: It was quite a surprise to win the JEINA award at the PFC. As engineering students, we initially approached Rehabit as an opportunity to apply our technical skills to a real world healthcare challenge.
To have the project recognised for its potential beyond a university setting has been both rewarding and motivating.
We see it as an important milestone, as it highlights Rehabit’s growth and potential to move beyond a working prototype into its next stage of development. With this funding, we plan to move Rehabit towards becoming a standalone product, which includes preparing for manufacturing, gaining ethics approval, and running clinical trials. Our vision is to see Rehabit available in hospitals across Australia, helping patients have a bit more fun in their recovery journey.
Learn more about the Taste of Innovation program on the IHealthE website.
