Two California teenagers, Ruoqi Li, 16, and Jason Yang, 17, have developed an artificial intelligence-powered system designed to identify fall risks in older adults before a fall occurs.
asserted
fall → develop → adults
According to Davidson Institute, the project, called SafeStrides, combines a smartphone application with wearable sensors to analyse walking patterns and provide an assessment of a person's fall risk.
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project → accord → risk
Li, a junior at The Harker School in San Jose, and Yang, a senior at Head-Royce School, developed the project as a way to make fall-risk assessment more accessible outside medical facilities.
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assessment → develop → facilities
Their work has now earned them recognition as 2026 Davidson Fellows and a shared $100,000 scholarship in the engineering category.
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work → earn → category
The teenagers said their interest in the problem was influenced by seeing family members suffer serious injuries after falls.
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members → say → falls
As they researched the issue, they found that falls are a major cause of injury and injury-related death among older adults.
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falls → research → adults
The project description by the Davidson Institute says one in four older adults falls every year.
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adults → say → Institute
With SafeStrides, instead of waiting for a fall to happen or relying only on occasional assessments at a clinic, an older adult could use a smartphone and wearable sensors at home for regular screening.
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adult → wait → screening
The system collects movement data and uses AI to identify changes that could indicate an increased risk of falling.
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that → collect → falling
How SafeStrides works
SafeStrides uses a smartphone camera and wearable sensors to study how an older person walks.
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person → work → camera
During a short guided test, the application collects video and sensor data and combines them for an assessment.
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application → guide → assessment
The wearable system uses inertial measurement units, or IMUs, along with pressure insoles.
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system → use → insoles
An IMU can capture movement-related information, while pressure insoles provide data about how a person places weight on their feet.
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person → capture → feet
These different types of information are brought together so the system can examine walking and movement in more detail.
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system → bring → detail
The smartphone application synchronises the sensor data with a live camera feed.
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application → synchronise → feed
It then uses multimodal AI to produce an evaluation of fall risk.
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It → use → risk
The system also gives practical suggestions related to mobility and home safety.
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system → give → mobility
SafeStrides is intended to identify changes months before a fall happens, allowing older adults to take steps towards improving mobility and safety.
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adults → intend → mobility
The system was developed to address limitations the teenagers identified in conventional fall-risk assessments.
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teenagers → develop → assessments
According to their project description, clinical assessments can require older adults to travel to medical facilities and can depend on physician availability.
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assessments → accord → availability
They also said many people are screened only once a year, which may make it harder to identify rapid changes in physical condition.
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it → say → condition
Building the system also required several rounds of engineering work.
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Building → build → work
From a bulky prototype to wearable sensors
Building the system also required several rounds of engineering work.
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Building → build → work
The first version of SafeStrides was an Arduino-based prototype.
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version → base → SafeStrides
Although it worked, the teenagers said it was bulky and could only process the collected information after testing was completed.
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testing → work → information
They then developed a second-generation system using IMUs, pressure insoles, an ESP32 microcontroller and Bluetooth modules.
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They → develop → IMUs
These changes allowed them to create a system that could collect and transmit sensor information in real time.
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that → allow → time
A third generation focused on the physical design of the wearable system.
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generation → focus → system
The teenagers made it more compact and lightweight so it could be worn more comfortably and without getting in the way of normal movement.
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it → make → movement
At the same time, they developed a cross-platform mobile application using Flutter.
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they → develop → Flutter
The app connects to the wearable hardware through Bluetooth and automatically synchronises high-frequency sensor streams with live camera footage.
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app → connect → footage
This created a single system in which movement captured by the wearable sensors and the smartphone camera can be analysed together.
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movement → create → sensors
The teenagers describe this combination as a multimodal approach because it brings together different forms of data instead of relying on just one measurement.
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it → describe → measurement
Designed for use at home and in clinics
SafeStrides is intended to work both at home and in clinical settings.
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SafeStrides → design → settings
At home, the system could allow older adults to complete guided assessments without travelling to a medical facility.
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adults → allow → facility
The app can then provide an immediate evaluation and suggestions related to mobility and home safety.
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app → provide → mobility
Meanwhile, medical assistants could use SafeStrides to conduct fall-risk evaluations without requiring direct physician involvement for every screening.
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assistants → use → screening
The teenagers said this could make assessments more consistent and easier to carry out.
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assessments → say → ?
Their project description says the system is designed for the world's 1.2 billion older adults.
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system → say → adults
They also said it could help shift fall prevention away from occasional screening towards more continuous monitoring.
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it → say → monitoring
…and 12 more, not listed.
The Aporia
