Design, build, and test a braille printer that the blind operators at BISM can use. The printer will enable BISM to print braille on a wide variety of products, from posters and greeting cards to industrial labels for their products.

At Design Build Fly at JHU, we compete in the annual DBF competition, where universities around the world design, build, and fly custom remote-controlled airplanes to optimally complete missions. This year, we placed 49 out of 159 teams, putting us in the top third of competitors! We’re very excited with our placement and improvement over last year, and can’t wait to build a better plane next year!

This project involved the development of a lightweight, interactive analytics widget designed to support coaches in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB). Due to strict league regulations prohibiting electronic device usage during games, the tool provides a compliant solution by allowing coaches to filter and sort real-time player statistics (batting, pitching, and fielding) and generate print-ready PDF reports for field use.

Built using Python, Streamlit, and ReportLab, the widget fetches data from the Pointstreak API, processes it into clean, sortable tables, and emphasizes usability through simple dropdown filters and a “Print” feature. The project was guided by feedback from a professional coach and is now integrated into the SLUGGER platform, supporting data-driven decision-making without violating in-game electronic restrictions.

Dancers face high foot, ankle, and knee injury rates due to improper form during pointe work and jumping movements from en pointe positions. Our device combines pressure mapping, haptic feedback motors, and an inertial measurement unit (IMU) to provide dancers with live feedback on their pointe work, preventing injuries before they occur. A flexible printed circuit board (PCB) with force sensors and a rigid PCB with microcontroller and IMU work together to correct dancers. The motors will vibrate to guide the dancer on how they should adjust to achieve proper form, alongside an LED for visual feedback. The sensors are housed in a 3D printed sleeve with connections to the rigid PCB worn on a band around the ankle, making it easy to integrate into a dancer’s existing routine. Ten dancers of varying skill levels will be tested to evaluate the device’s performance. We anticipate this innovation improving dancer safety by offering an accessible and affordable tool for injury prevention.