Student invention wins top prize at ASME Innovation Showcase

A device created by Johns Hopkins University engineering students to help infants with nerve injuries won the top honor at the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Innovation Showcase USA 2025, held virtually July 29-30.

The invention, called DINA, or Dynamic Infant Neurorehab Aid, is a soft robotic suit created to help rehabilitate newborns with brachial plexus palsy, or NBPP, a nerve injury that can affect arm and shoulder movement.

Led by biomedical engineering master's student Victor Ticllacuri, the team—which also includes master's students Ana Paula Pérez, Yuxuan Bai, Michela De Marzi, and Stevenson University undergraduate Alex Reimert—will receive a $10,000 seed grant and an invitation to the annual ISHOW Bootcamp. The prize package provides them with expert guidance and resources to help bring their product to market.

Inspiration for the DINA device emerged from both personal experience and a clear unmet need in neonatal care. "I spent my earliest years in hospitals due to a complicated premature birth, which gave me a lifelong sensitivity toward vulnerable newborns," Ticllacuri said.

The students—mentored by Nitish Thakor, a professor of biomedical engineering, and PhD student Kiara Quinn—consulted with clinicians at the Kennedy Krieger Institute as part of their project. They learned that NBPP affects more than 12,000 infants in the U.S. each year, yet no technology exists to support their rehabilitation.

The team's solution is designed to complement traditional therapies, which often require parents and physical therapists to manually perform exercises for hours each day.

DINA automates the most critical exercise for recovery: shoulder rotation. The wearable suit uses a soft-robotic muscle to gently perform these motions, which could make rehabilitation more consistent and help babies heal more effectively.

The team plans to invest the prize money in hardware development, including integrating medical-grade materials and performing biomechanical testing. The ISHOW Bootcamp will provide mentorship on commercialization strategy and regulatory planning, which are essential for navigating the medical device industry.

While the biggest hurdle will be regulatory approval, the team has already started developing a strategy at the university's Pava Marie LaPere Center for Entrepreneurship, transforming a classroom idea into a viable, real-world product.

"Because we're working with such a delicate population, safety standards are extremely strict," Ticllacuri said. "That makes our path to clinical trials challenging, but it's an essential step to ensuring this technology can truly help newborns in the safest way possible."