Eating is a basic daily activity, but for people with mobility challenges, it can be difficult to feed themselves. To help with this, a team of researchers came up with the Kiri-Spoon, a special 3D-printed spoon made from a flexible, paper-thin plastic sheet. When in use, the spoon expands into a small bowl that secures food inside. This simple yet clever design ensures that food doesn’t fall off, making the eating process much smoother.
Robotic arm feeding makes it difficult to handle tricky utensils like forks and spoons. The idea of the Kiri spoon comes from this problem statement, and hence team led by Losey from Virginia Tech teamed up with Tapomayukh Bhattacharjee’s team from Cornell to develop the Kiri-Spoon, an origami-inspired spoon that can grab and have a more efficient grip to hold the food and feed it to the user.
To further develop and test the technology, they tested it on people and were able to improve it further by adding a flexible, food-safe wire, making the spoon both more comfortable and functional. After making these adjustments, the second round of testing was a success and better than the one with metal hoops.
While the Kiri-Spoon is still in development, it’s already showing great potential in helping people with disabilities eat more independently. Researchers hope that with continued improvements, this technology will become a reliable tool for those who need it most.
