Robots!

There are few things that make me happier than robots - couldn't tell you why, they just do. So you combine robots with young folk doing awesome in the world, and you've got an Illumination!

Today, we're talking about Daniela Saez (warning: autoplay video in Spanish with English subtitles). She's an engineering student who's been fascinated by robots since she was a kid. Due to a lack of resources in her school, her early robotic education was found online or from other students, as the school couldn't afford an instructor. That was enough for Daniela to put together a robotic sensor for the blind that allows people with vision problems to walk without a cane (sensors indicate the distance between the person's foot and an obstacle), as well as identifying the color of objects. It's been presented in several places around the world, as well as in Daniela's native Chile.

Her next big project is a robotic arm prosthetic for a girl who lost the majority of her arm (up to the shoulder). She has a prototype, and is working with the patient and others to secure funding to make it a reality. Above-the-elbow prosthetic devices aren't common and have significant issues in design and development, but Daniela is taking it all in stride. She wants to help people, so she's just going to do what she can. With robots.