Versatile arm trainer for post stroke arm rehabilitation

Exploration of the market opportunity and review of the intellectual property landscape

The clinical need:

Stroke is one of the leading causes of long-term disability worldwide, with many survivors experiencing upper-limb weakness that affects independence and quality of life. Despite national guidelines recommending intensive rehabilitation, healthcare services often struggle to provide sufficient therapy due to workforce pressures and increasing demand.

Project challenge:

Researchers at Sheffield Hallam University developed a digital upper-limb rehabilitation device designed to support progressive strength training following stroke. The team needed to understand the market opportunity, clinical pathway fit, competitive landscape and intellectual property (IP) position to support future development, funding applications and commercialisation activities. After a successful Place Based Impact Accelerator grant application, the Sheffield team chose Medipex to support them.

How did Medipex help?

Medipex delivered a combined proof of market study and IP landscape review.

The market assessment explored the clinical need, rehabilitation pathways, market opportunity and competing technologies. The work identified growing demand for home-based and digitally enabled rehabilitation solutions and highlighted a gap in the market for technologies that combine progressive strength training, digital monitoring and accessibility across hospital and home settings.

Alongside this, Medipex conducted a detailed review of the intellectual property landscape, including patent searches, competitor analysis and assessment of opportunities for future protection. The review examined key features of the Sheffield Hallam technology.

Impact:

The combined studies provided the Sheffield Hallam University team with a robust evidence base to support future product development, commercialisation planning and funding applications. The work identified opportunities to strengthen the technology's competitive position, inform future IP strategy and provided valuable insight into potential adoption pathways.

By combining commercial and intellectual property expertise, Medipex helped Sheffield Hallam University take important steps towards translating innovative rehabilitation research into a technology with the potential to improve outcomes for stroke survivors.

Testimonial:

I would like to express my sincere thanks to you for the excellent work you have done in preparing the final reports for our Digital Arm Trainer project. We greatly appreciate the time, effort, and expertise that went into both the market assessment and the IP landscape review. The reports are comprehensive, well-structured, and provide valuable insights that will be extremely helpful as we move forward with the clinical feasibility and IP strategy for the project. I would also like to thank you for completing the reports on schedule. Delivering such high-quality work within the agreed timeframe is greatly appreciated and reflects your professionalism and commitment. It has been a pleasure working with Medipex throughout this project. We appreciate your support and look forward to the opportunity to work together again on future projects.

Dr Mohsen Shafizadeh & Dr Rachel Young 

Sheffield Hallam University

Advance Wellbeing Research Centre