Arella
Arella
Arella is an Umbrella attachment for Arthritis patients that transfers the load of the Umbrella from the person’s hands to their shoulder, making it a pain-free experience.
Refocusing the project, I designed a shoulder-mounted attachment that transfers an umbrella’s weight away from the hands, reducing wrist strain. The prototype featured a straight, wide rest that proved uncomfortable and structurally weak, leading me to develop a second version with an arched shoulder form for improved comfort and load distribution. The final design refined this concept into a compact, foldable attachment that can be retrofitted onto any umbrella, providing arthritis patients with greater comfort and independence. This individual academic project was completed at BITS Pilani under the guidance of Prof. M.S. Dasgupta.
This project started as an exploration of ergonomics in everyday products and eventually evolved into a mobility aid for arthritis patients. My initial goal was to redesign the traditional umbrella so that users’ feet would remain dry while walking in the rain. I created a leaf-shaped canopy that better matched human walking motion and added a shoulder support to transfer weight from the user’s hand to the shoulder. However, after analyzing realistic rain and wind angles, I realized that the required canopy size made the design impractical. During a later conversation with a neighbor who had arthritis, I saw potential in developing the shoulder support as a standalone assistive product.
