SpecialEffect's accessible GameBase

My niece enjoys playing the Wii but finds the controller too heavy as she has Spinal Muscular Atrophy. She does well with Mario Cart as she can rest the steering wheel on her lap and just turn it when needed. She is better at this than me. She loves to play Just Dance but as this game involves waving the controller around she finds it tiring, as it is hard for her to do this without a controller in her hand. Is there a light palm held controller that could be used for this?

Hi Kaz,

Some intitial thoughts:

There is an arm holder available on the mainstream market called Wiitality aimed at Wii fit users etc to allow for hands free exercise. This could also be used to take the weight out of a users hands:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/WIITALITY-HANDS-WIIMOTE-ARMBAND-BLACK/dp/B001Q7RVF8

Here is another version of the arm support which also has the buttons on an extension, to be used with the hand of the same arm or the opposite hand:
http://www.broadenedhorizons.com/wiimote.htm

I don't know of a lighter version of a standard Wii controller at the momment which can be held in the palm, but I will ask and have a look around.

Regards,

Bill

Hi Bill,

Thank you for your reply. I have had a look at the items you suggested, unfortunately they still involve the remote being used which is the problem.
She is able to play the usual games that just require the buttons, but when it comes to the ones like just dance she does well, but it would be nice for her to be able to do it without strugglng with the weight. Is there a separate sensor control? As for just dance you only need the sensor part for the dancing.

Thanks again for your help.

Kaz

Hi Kaz,

Do you mean the movement sensors within the Wiimote e.g. the part which reacts to how you shake, swing etc the controller?

Thanks,

Bill

Hi Bill,

Yes, thats exactly what i mean. I waffled on a bit, sorry. Any ideas?


Thanks
Kaz

Hi Kaz,

Thanks for getting back so quickly with the info. There is not an 'off the shelf' lighter version of the Wiimote (though I think it would be a good idea). However, it may be possible that a standard one could be customised in some way to reduce the weight. I know that Barrie 'One Switch' Ellis from the GameBase is having a think about this and will probably comment in this forum tommorow.

Regards,

Bill

Hi Bill,

Thank you for all your help and information. I had a feeling there was nothing out there yet, but as you say would be a good idea.

Kind Regards

Kaz

Hi Kaz,

What about if the Wii-remote could be lightened, by repositioning the 2x AA batteries? And perhaps supported to her hand using velcro and a glove, or perhaps a tennis sweat-band?

I could probably hack a Wii-remote so that the battery is worn as a belt, connected by two trailing wires to the controller.

Do you think loosing the weight of two AA batteries would make much of a difference to her? I could probably lighten the controller further, but it might start to look a bit rough.

All the best,

Barrie

Hi Kaz,

Barrie 'One Switch' Ellis and I had a chat about this yesterday, and came up ith some ideas for possibly lightening the Wiimote. Barrie is going to do some experimenting and if he comes up with a decent solution it would be great if you could give it a go for us and some feedback.

Regards,

Bill

Hi Barrie,

Thank you for getting back to me. I have spoken with my sister and explained what you had come up with, she said it sounded good, she is going to get Ellie (my niece) to see how the romote feels without the batteries in. I tried and it felt much lighter, but it would be different for her. There is a website that you could look at(if you wish) which is the site for children and adults with SMA. It is www.jtsma.org.uk, you may already know of them.
If there was any way a controller about the size of a pen could be developed, that would make it even lighter and easier for her to use. I know these things take time etc, i imagine you would have to get onto Nintendo to develop something like this. My sister (Kim) said so many children with neuro muscular disorders would benefit from it.
If you need Ellie to trial anything she would be happy to do so.

Thank you again for your time and effort.

Kind Regards,

Kaz

Hi Bill,

I have spoken to my sister and she asked my niece Ellie if she would be happy to try anything Barrie comes up with and give you feedback.

Thanks Again Bill.

Kaz

Excellant, we'll see what we can come up with.

Bill

Thanks Bill. Look forward to hearing from you.

Kaz

Hi all,

I'm going to try trimming down a Wii remote later , in a basic way (remove/replace vibration motor, batteries and see if I can shave off anything that I can get away with). I'll weigh it before and after, and if it works, we'll get it sent to you (send me a private message with your address, or please e-mail it to barrie [hat] specialeffect.org.uk - removing the hat and replacing with an @ of course.

Fingers crossed time! I'll next look at removing the essential parts of the Wii remote to see if I can get it down to the size of a pen, or perhaps more likely, a thin microphone. Chances are, it will have a trailing wire leading to a normal Wii remote that will be needed for the D-pad and other buttons. That will likely take a bit longer to do.

I'll get some pictures up here when there's anything worth putting up.

Best wishes,

Barrie

Hi Barrie,

Thank you so much for your time. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with.
I will send you my sisters address as my niece is the one who can tell you best if it makes it easier for her.
My sister Kim was really pleased to hear about you and your work.
I will send a private message, i can also send you my sisters email address so you can contact her directly if you need to as she knows much more than i do as to Ellie's abilities.

Thank you again.

Kaz

Hi Kaz,

Okay, this is my first effort. I've removed the speaker, vibration motor, battery connectors and batteries from this Wii remote, and added a grommet and wiring to simply plug in and out of a battery box. I'm not 100% sure if I've provided enough wire, but this is easy to extend. I can make a lighter battery box, but I liked this one as it was a bit funkier, and is easy to get at the batteries to change them. Might be worth considering a bum-bag / velcro loop / belt to secure it to Ellie's waist - or near by.

By the way, Just Dance doesn't seem to need the sensor bar for the game play, so you don't need to worry about being in the right position. I'll send a wrist sweat-band with it too, as this can support holding the controller further. It's not a very girly one though, I'm afraid, but all I had to hand.

So, the weigh in...

Original controller with rubber jacket: 186g
Wii Remote Lite: 82g (excluding the external battery box)

It still might not be enough, but if it's not, we'll need to take a different approach.

Hi Barrie,

This looks great. Thank you so much for your time. I'm so glad i watched the marathon as that is where i saw (you i think) with the logo's on your t shirts being interviewed. Kim and Ellie are looking forward to trying out the controller. Kim was really impressed with the weight difference.
I Have emailed you Kim's address and email etc so you can contact her directly if you need to.
Ellie won't mind the wrist band not being too girlie, she is a pretty cool girl!

Thanks again.

Kaz

Hi Kaz,

Oh wow! I'm so glad I plucked up the courage to get interviewed, if that's how you found us. I'll get the controller boxed up with the spare wrist band I didn't wear for the Marathon, and try and get it sent off tomorrow, or Saturday. Fingers crossed this will work out for Ellie. If not, we'll tweak it or try something else.

Cheers,

Barrie

Hi Barrie,

I'm glad you plucked up the courage to get interviewed too, and that my husband has good memory for website addresses!! As i said they are looking forward to trying it out. Pleased you're sending the 'spare' wristband!!!
Well done for doing the marathon, don't think i could.

Thanks again

Kaz

You're welcome, Kaz. As I say, glad you've found us.

Sent the controller off on Friday special delivery so fingers crossed it gets to Ellie intact, working, and does the trick. I do have another idea to lighten the controller further, but best to wait and see how she gets on first.

All the best,

Barrie

Hi Barrie,

Spoke to Kim this morning, they were out most of the day yesterday so Ellie only just got to try the controller.
She has had a quick go on one game but is waiting for my mum to take round just Dance etc.
From what Kim said Ellie is pretty impressed with it. Kim can't believe how light it is. I think she is going to email you when she gets 5 mins. She loves the battery box!!

Thank you Barrie

Kaz

Hi Kaz,

Had a lovely e-mail through from Kim, hope she won't mind me repeating part of it:

"Ellie loves the pretty tin and immediately proudly showed it all of to friends and family at my sons birthday. She found it so much easier and was able to play for longer. I will watch her over the next few days and chat to her about how she finds it."

We're hoping it's okay to make this prototype a long-term loan item, so that if anything should need adapting further, or if it ever needs repairing, we'll take responsibility for doing this to the best of our ability. It would be great to find out if the controller is still okay, now that Ellie has hopefully had a bit more time to get used to it. Our fingers are crossed!

Barrie

Hi Barrie,

Kim sent me a copy of the email, i am so pleased that Ellie is finding it easier.
I will give Kim a call to see how Ellie is getting on with it now. I know she is looking forwrd to showing it off to my boys when we go over in the summer ( as we live in Ireland).
I hope this idea will be helpful to lots of other children with special needs, i'm sure it will once you have the chance to tweek it if necessary.

Thanks Barrie for al your time and help.

Kaz

Ellie in action with her SpecialEffect adapted Wii-Mote

Hi Barry,

I meant to come on here again before now, when i last saw Ellie in the summer she let me try the controller. WOW!! is all i can say, i couldn't believe how much difference there was in the weight. It is so light.
I know Ellie thinks its fantastic and makes playing the games so much easier, especially against my boys who are a bit competitive!! They think the controller is great too.

Thank you for all your time and effort spent on this, I am so grateful.

Loving the pictures!!

Kaz