Case Study: University of Waterloo improves wheelchair curling performance with Maplesoft MapleSim

University of Waterloo - Customer Case Study

The University of Waterloo, working with Maplesoft, set out to help wheelchair curlers gain greater control and consistency in their shots. Using Maplesoft’s MapleSim software, Professor John McPhee and his team studied the motor control and biomechanics of Paralympic curling athletes to address the challenge of improving accuracy under varying ice conditions.

Maplesoft’s MapleSim enabled the team to model and optimize a curling stick end effector that allows athletes to pull the stone back slightly before release, breaking friction and improving repeatability. The result was the Mark 7 device, now in its seventh iteration and close to finished, with the potential to raise shooting accuracy in wheelchair curling from roughly 60–62% to as high as 70–75%, according to Team Canada’s Mark Ideson.

University of Waterloo

John McPhee

Canada Research Chair and Professor of Systems Design Engineering