Raccoon.World rehabilitation solution for people with hand disabilities
Syndicode always knew that here in Ukraine we do have the most talented specialists and software engineers. Also, we do have many great projects aimed to make this world a better place! Today we will tell you about Ukrainian startup Raccoon.World that is developing rehabilitation solution for people with hand disabilities based on Big Data and Machine Learning. This is the brand new solution aimed to help people with hand disabilities (cerebral palsy, quadriplegic, hand injuries, stroke survivors etc). When this world is getting crazy about data science and artificial intelligence, it’s so good to see that the scientific progress can really improve our lives! Raccoon.World is a Ukrainian startup from Kyiv specializing in robotics and VR/AR/MR that creates an exclusive solution for restoring human fine motor skills through classic games and the orthopedic controller (software and hardware). By now 3 pilot projects have been already launched by Raccoon.World in Ukrainian hospitals. The following week, the startup will apply for ‘Horizon 2020’ for a product development grant and additional researchers. At this stage, Raccoon.World decided to share the information on its new product. The problem In the era when people plan to reach Mars and are close to a complete victory over cancer, the functionality of hands is still restored by artisan methods (massage, exercises with a tennis ball, etc.). Every year, over 17 million people all over the world suffer from cerebral palsy, the same number of them receive a stroke and more than 50 million of people lose their hands’ functionality as a result of an accident. Existing rehabilitation methods are either obsolete or can not be used outside of medical facilities or have a limited amount of software. Moreover, there is no single solution that would be effective and accessible, there are no mobile and cloud solutions for that.
The idea When the company presented their previous product, the Raccoon.Clip gaming controller, at TechCrunch Disrupt 2017 in San Francisco, a little boy came up to them. He could not cope with the mouse or the gamepad because of problems with his hands. But with the presented Raccoon.Clip gaming controller, for the first time his life, the boy was able to play video games. This incident pushed Raccoon.World to the idea of creating a solution for people with disabilities based on Raccoon.Clip gaming device. They provided a preliminary survey, found out the individual needs of people with motor disorders and began to work in this direction. Raccoon.World rehabilitation solution for people with hand disabilities The rehabilitation program is designed for people with hand disabilities (hand injuries, stroke consequences etc). Raccoon.World create a complex solution for patients and doctors that includes:
Raccoon.Clip No need to hold the controller in hands. Haptic movements for training.
Analytics software Easy-to-use for patients and doctors. Data gathering and analytics.
It is going to speed up hand rehabilitation and provide the ability to enjoy video games to people with different possibilities. Analytics software includes: 
A comprehensive software for physicians allowing to collect statistics and choose the treatment based on computer games.  iOS/Android application for users, where they can track their progress. Using cloud technology, all the components continuously exchange the data. Thus, the patient, starting rehab in the hospital, can continue this process home being under constant remote supervision by a doctor. The technology Raccoon.World rehabilitation solution is a hi-end solution. Using the latest approaches, the data collecting processes can be done extremely fast. Moreover, different data can be gathered seamlessly (movement speed, hand position, wrist angle etc). Immediately after the information is gathered there is going a data processing, results displaying, analysis and recommendations providing. The software is based on Machine Learning and Big Data.
The rehabilitation solution aimed to provide 1. A better emotional state When people with disabilities can play video games like others this ability provides a better mood and positive attitude to life. 2. Improved fine motor skills Playing with Racoon.Clip is based on haptic movements. Moreover, gaming mode of rehabilitation inspires the patient to train more. 3. Higher brain activity Exercises for hands and fingers have a positive effect on brain activity. The reflex points on the hands transfer impulses to the central nervous system. 4. Analytics of methodologies Gathering data about dynamics of rehabilitation helps to compare the effectiveness of different treatment methods. The advantage of using games This solution does not require special software, it uses existing games. Thus, three problems are solved:
the lack of content (technological solutions often suffer from this); the content high-cost problem; the level of the patient involvement. According to the gathered data, depending on the group of muscles to be trained and the individual preferences of the patient, the doctor can choose the type of game. The roadmap of how the service is going to be evolved – 07/2018 Testing in Ukraine – 09/2018 Testing in USA and EU – 02/2019 Start of FDA certification process – 12/2019 FDA certificate, the start of medical programs in the US Solution will be available for sales since summer 2018. Mass sales will start when it will get the certification.
Test the product To apply for the free pilot, visit the official project site. In addition, the team is looking for partners and investors who will help Raccoon.World to speed up and scale this noble endeavor. If you are the representative of a medical institution, scientist, healthcare worker, investor or fund representative, please contact the team! Let’s change the life of the people with hands disabilities together!