Colorado man's invention twirls its way into the Air Force

When Kevin Maher came up with a device to make his daughter's physical therapy sessions easier, he had no idea his invention would have military applications.

A semiconductor consultant, Maher created what's now known as the Vestimumax, a machine that turns, twirls and shifts its' occupant in two directions, so he or she can spin horizontally and vertically at the same time.

The medical device uses include treatment for cerebral palsy- related symptoms -- problems with inner-ear balance and torso strength for sitting, crawling and standing.

The military is interested in using the device for training new pilots, de-sensitizing them to the fast movement of aircraft that can frequently cause motion sickness.

The Vestimumax derives its name from physical therapy applications, vestibular, or balance, stimulation exercises.

During 2002, Maher's daughter, Meckenzie, needed more than 480 repetitions of different exercises to increase her ability to move.

"I'm an engineer," Maher said. "And I thought there had to be an easier way to do these exercises. They were killing me -- and they were hurting Meckenzie."

It turns out, there was -- it just hadn't been invented yet.

Not only did Maher's machine make it easier for her to perform the necessary exercises, it quickly improved her mobility.

The first machines were "crude," Maher said, and took about seven months to develop and refine. But the work paid off, and the results were immediately noticeable.

"She didn't fall as much," Maher said. "Within two weeks, you could see a difference. She was crawling, and within two months, her trunk control had improved dramatically."

Maher recognized the possible military and flight applications, and attended a military aviation technology trade show last year -- earning the attention of the Air Force Academy.

Military officials liked the idea and six years later, he's close to selling a commercial version of the Vestimumax to the Air Force Academy.

Two Air Force Academy departments are interested in the machine. Donald Veverka, director of the Human Environment Research Center, is interested in the physiological effects of flight: blood pressure and heart rate, both of which are measured by the computer. Another department wants to examine the psychological aspects of flight, and the machine will allow that as well.

The two departments are waiting for approval from the academy's equipment board before they can begin using the Vestimumax.

"This does a very good job of simulating the stresses -- the physiological stresses -- of flight," Veverka said. "In the Air Force, the spatial disorientation can get pretty extreme in a high- performance air craft. And Kevin's machine can mimic those movements."

The Vestimumax can imitate the pitch -- forward movement of the aircraft -- and the yaw -- the side to side movement, Veverka said.

But, it's different from other flight simulators in a very important way: it comes with a unique software program.

"We want the cadets to experience what flight might be like," Veverka said. "And we want the program to be exactly the same each time they go through the program. This machine comes with a software package that allows just that."

The sales of the device have been a long time coming, Maher said.

The first machines used a child's car seat bolted to two wooden wheels and only moved in one direction. The new version is made of metal and plastic and moves on several different axes. It is completely automated, running on a computer program or manually with a wireless joystick.

The process wasn't without its ups and downs. Dealing with the Food and Drug Administration proved daunting, and getting on the military's radar was elusive, until he attended the aviation technology trade show.

"It did take several months to locate the appropriate military personnel," Maher said. "Their procurement process can be lengthy."

When Maher originally contacted the FDA to get approval to sell the Vestimumax, they suggested he call researchers to obtain the necessary studies to prove his product worked.

The first place he called -- the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston -- agreed to work with him.

"Basically, we collaborated to go the scientific route," he said. "And they said that if I could get the machine to move on two axes at once, it would be a fantastic product."

Maher expects final FDA approval by the end of 2008. And recently he worked with California Polytechnical Institute to create a smaller, cheaper version for home use.

The commercial Vestimumax will sell for about $125,000 -- relatively inexpensive for a piece of rehab equipment and for a military simulator, which sell for millions. But the smaller home version will sell for less than $2,000, he said.

"So many children need this," he said. "Their whole world is just a wheelchair, curled up. This kind of physical therapy will change that, allow them to move on their own."

No stranger to creating his own company, Maher said he still appreciated the guidance from the Colorado Springs Technology Incubator, where he headquarters the offices for his new company.