Short Summary
My name is Leo Nguyen, Founder and CEO of Five Microns, the company producing Tremelo. I am also an Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at California State University, Fresno. My expertise is in Vibration Control and Product Design, but my passions are healthcare and helping people. I have previously done research in prosthetic knee and ankle, trying to reduce the cost so that more people have access to them.
My campaign is to raise funding to launch my product Tremelo - hand stabilizer for Essential Tremor. People with Essential Tremor has problem with completing their daily activities due to their tremor. It affects their quality of life and independence. There are about more than 7 million people in the USA and hundreds of millions of people in the entire world suffering from Essential Tremor. Tremelo has a novel design using a vibration control technology called "tuned mass damper". This technology has been proven in industry for a long time. I started this project in my University research lab with one simple question "If this technology works for machinery, will it work for human body?" After months and years of development, Tremelo has proven effective on human arms and hands. Now, your contribution will allow the Tremelo to move from a working prototype in research lab into a product in the market to help many people in need.
What We Need & What You Get
I'm trying to raise $300,000 to produce a few hundreds of the Tremelo. Among them, at least 300 devices will be deposited at occupational therapists' offices around the country for people to try out at no cost. The funding will also allow Five Microns to produce at least another 200 devices to be dedicated to persons in need. The funding will be used for the manufacturing of the Tremelo. We will not use any funding for buying expensive ads on televisions or internet.
Your contribution is deeply appreciated regardless of the size. However, please check out the following unique rewards:
1) $10 – Acknowledgement on fivemicrons.com: Your name will be listed as a donor in our Acknowledgement page on Five Microns' website.
2) $50 - Acknowledgement + Tremelo t-shirt:
Your name will be included in the Acknowledgement page on Five Microns' website, and you will receive a Tremelo t-shirt.
- For USA residents, you will receive one t-shirt for every $50 you donate.
- For other countries, you will receive one t-shirt for every $100 you donate.
3) $500 – Wall plaque acknowledgement:
Besides the acknowledgement on Five Microns' website, a Tremelo t-shirt, you will receive a wall plaque acknowledging your support of Tremelo project.
4) $900 – Dedicate one device to a person in need
Besides the acknowledgement on Five Microns' website and a Tremelo t-shirt, you will be able to dedicate a device to a person you know in need. You will be contacted for the information about the person you want the device to be sent to. That person will also receive a Tremelo t-shirt.
5) $2500 – Dedicate three devices
Besides the acknowledgement on Five Microns' website and a Tremelo t-shirt, you will be able to dedicate three Tremelo devices to persons you know in need. You will be contacted for the information about the persons you want the Tremelo devices sent to. They will also receive a Tremelo t-shirt for each person.
6) $5000 – Gold Sponsor
Besides the ability to dedicate one Tremelo device to a person you know in need, your name will be included on Five Microns' homepage for 2 months as a Gold Sponsor. You will be contacted for the information of the person you want the Tremelo device sent to.
The Impact
The success of this campaign paves way for the research idea to become an effective assistive device. Your contribution allows Five Microns to offer Tremelo devices to the market. That will potentially affect hundreds of thousands of tremor patients' lives who are benefited from our devices for years to come.
Risks & Challenges
We have an effective device, but getting it to the hands of people in need is challenging. It's due to the fact that our target Essential Tremor patients are not active on social media, which is a low cost way of reaching out to people. Besides, advertisements on TV are very expensive. However, the raised fund will allow us to build and expand the network of occupational therapists and neurologists around the country. This will efficiently provide patients the access to our devices from where they live.
Other Ways You Can Help
The financial contribution is crucial, but your assistance in spreading the word is also significantly important. Please post or share about his campaign or Tremelo on your social media because tremor patients' children or family members may see your posts and refer their loved ones to check the Tremelo out. You can also make this campaign known much wider using the Indiegogo tools. We appreciate anything you can help! Thank YOU!
