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Chiara, an American-Italian little girl, was born in North Carolina, in 2018. She was diagnosed with an ultra rare genetic syndrome that has and will affect all her life. 

Belta, a functional orthopedic machine, was invented and created for a disabled child, with obvious developmental delays and motor difficulties. This machine aims at the correction of deformities of bones or muscles, by allowing the child to sit up on the ground, in a 90 degree angle, without the support of a parent or professional figure. This creation aims to support the impact of another and earlier milestone of motor development in infancy (i.e., self-sitting) on the expression of a behavior thought to be the basis for major progress in early development (i.e., reaching).

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This device was created from the awareness that a child with independent support difficulties and disabilities, has the necessary need to ensure all the safety margins, to allow one to stay upright in conditions of maximum tranquility, caring to prevent any possible unforeseen events.

From these simple and obvious considerations, the idea of ​​building Belta, a tool that allows the user to stay in an upright position, sitting on the ground, while preventing any unstable conditions and having to wear invasive belts, safety locks, etc.

The importance for babies with disabilities to be sitting up and feeling the comfort of a machine that mimics the supporting hands of someone, has been shown to increase awareness of the surroundings, and  give a more tangible grip and focus on the objects that are around. In fact, helping a baby sit up in a secure, well-supported manner during learning sessions/therapies may help them in a wide variety of learning situations, not just during object-feature learning. This knowledge can be advantageous, particularly to infants who have cognitive delays who truly need an optimal learning environment. The research study also suggests that delayed sitting may cause babies to miss learning experiences that affect other areas of development.

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Thanks Chiara, for being our muse and the best teacher for a special life!