Revolutionizing Patient Rehabilitation with Harmonic Bionics' Harmony SHR

Harmonic Bionics is an Austin, Texas-based company that develops intelligent robotics for patient rehabilitation. Their flagship product, Harmony SHR, is designed to optimize upper extremity therapy by enabling early intervention, increasing intensity, and employing patient-specific intent-based therapy through novel exercises. The company was founded by Clinical Research Officer Dr. Ashish Deshpande and Chief Technology and Operating Officer Dr. Youngmok Yun at the University of Texas at Austin’s ReNeu Robotics Lab in 2016. The company is currently working on making Harmony SHR commercially available for use in hospital systems, rehabilitation clinics, and out-patient treatment centers.

The World Health Organization estimates that hundreds of millions of people suffer from over 600 different neurological disorders, including strokes, Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy, Multiple Sclerosis, and Parkinson’s disease. In 2017, the global prevalence of strokes alone was 104.2 million. For survivors, the road to recovery is challenging and requires extensive rehabilitation with the continued assistance of therapists, doctors, and clinicians. To regain motor functions after suffering strokes or other sudden onset conditions that can cause brain or spinal cord injuries, repetitive motions are essential to help patients regain neuroplasticity. However, this task is daunting for both therapists and patients, requiring a significant amount of time and effort.

Harmonic Bionics, an Austin, TX based company that develops intelligent robotics, introduced a revolutionary new way for patients and therapists to maximize patient recovery—Harmony SHR. Harmony SHR replaces the repetitive motions that a physical therapist would use, giving them more time to observe and customize therapy protocols using objective data that the device collects during each session. The device was born at the University of Texas at Austin’s ReNeu Robotics Lab in 2016, under the guidance of two of Harmonic's principal founders, Clinical Research Officer Dr. Ashish Deshpande and Chief Technology and Operating Officer Dr. Youngmok Yun. As Harmonic Bionics moves to commercialize Harmony SHR beyond the confines of the lab, they’ve also added Altium Designer to their arsenal, allowing for multiple new product developments.

• The use of Altium Designer has significantly improved the efficiency of Harmonic Bionics' operations. The tool has made it easier to design printed circuit boards, even in tight mechanical requirements. It has also simplified the review process, with an easy-to-use viewer that shows the entire schematic in 3D. Furthermore, Altium Designer has made it easier to change the board shape and tie components to their footprints, simplifying BOM creation. The tool also takes care of generating the folder structure, making the entire process more straightforward and efficient. As a result, Harmonic Bionics' designs and BOMs are solid, and the company is ready to introduce their flagship robot to rehabilitation hospitals and centers far beyond the confines of UT Austin’s ReNeu Robotics Lab.

• The average robot incorporates 24 unique boards, with custom-designed motors that drive each unit’s intricate gear system. With Altium Designer, Duncan can design as many as 4 boards per day.

• On average, the development process is at least 30% more efficient since Duncan began using Altium Designer.

• The design process per board used to take about five to six hours on average with other ECAD software; now it can be done almost immediately.