Meeting Log

9/25/19

Notes

• Materials
  • Easily washable
  • Radio-translucent
• Size requirements – fit into machine
• Rail design
• Build upon Velcro design
• Two sizes of chair
• 5-15 age range is biggest need
• Neck support
• Three-point harness
• Axle system – more stable than wheels, locks in place
• Need to remove child easily if necessary
• Creative, fun design

Action Items

1. Email about shadowing
2. Google search to see what is already on the market for special needs seating
3. Look into budget
4. Jot down any ideas

Weekly Write-Up: Small Group Dynamics (Week 6) – 9/25/19

The purpose of this design project is to design an optimal positioning/seating system for videofluoroscopic studies in children. Current designs of seating systems for these studies do not offer adequate positioning/stability for children, especially those with developmental and motor challenges, and they are not compatible with other patient equipment.

Our senior design team is made up of four students: Katie Henderson (BME), Noah Mallory (BME), Justin Cruz (BME), and John Kerr (BME/EE). Katie has extensive pediatric clinical exposure and experience as marketing/advertising chair (Marketing), treasurer (Finance), and president of an engineering organization, making her qualified to handle the administrative aspects of our project. Noah also has extensive pediatric clinical exposure and experience operating/handling machinery. Justin and John both have experience carrying out research in a biomechanics lab developing assistive technology.

Each of our team members bring unique skillsets and experiences with them to the design process. In order to maximize the benefits of our differences, we must intentionally work to make every group meeting a positive, open environment that encourages each and every idea. If any member does not feel that his/her ideas are valued, then their contributions will not be heard or implemented. To do so, we will start by getting together for weekly team meetings/check-ins and lunches or dinners. The more comfortable we are with each other as peers, the more comfortable each person will feel speaking up. Getting to know each other better will also promote team cohesion as we learn how each person thinks and operates best. Our group progress/efficiency may initially lag due to the time it takes to work out how we can best work together, but once we overcome that period of learning, our teamwork and progress will rapidly grow.

The concept of synergy is also crucial to team success because the best teams must work together to ensure that their combined efforts are greater than the sum of their individual efforts. We must be aware of our individual skillsets and personalities and use them to our advantage. Justin and Noah are the most outspoken and good at throwing out many ideas, but John and Katie are better at reflecting on problems internally before proposing solutions. We can use our differing personalities to complement each other when brainstorming solutions to problems.

Finally, we must promote a team outlook that encourages opposition and friendly debates. We will not reach our full potential and create the best possible design unless we are constantly challenging each other and ourselves. Progress comes from change, and change will not come about unless we identify the existing problems that need to be improved upon. We must learn to welcome this opposition from our peers as a chance to learn and grow, and in doing so we will become better learners and engineers.

10/2/19

Action Items

1. Ask Dr. Walker how budget works, anything we need to turn in
2. Look into existing designs (Katie)
3. Look into radio-translucent materials (Noah)
4. Make a list of important components to design (Justin and John)
   1. Head, strap, chair
5. Start making general sketches and keep track of ideas/findings

 

10/9/19

Identified Needs:

• Washable
• Mobile
• Radio-translucent
• Fits the size constraints
• Stability
• Comfort
• Child friendly design
• Tray for food and barium
• Adjustable for different sizes of children
• Lightweight
• Trunk braces
• Head braces
• Reclining feature
• Straps easily removable
• Adjustable height
• Does not block off the neck or upper chest
• Inexpensive
• Allow for special equipment like a pulse oximeter monitor or a ventilator

Action Items

1. Create a list of needs to be presented to Kaitlyn
   • QFD in the future
2. Plan out future meeting times for watching VFSS
3. Continue ideation and sketching for possible designs
4. Develop and improve upon the existing website

Weekly Write-Up: Interdisciplinary Making (Week 8) – 10/9/19

The purpose of this design project is to design an optimal positioning/seating system for videofluoroscopic studies in children. Current designs of seating systems for these studies do not offer adequate positioning/stability for children, especially those with developmental and motor challenges, and they are not compatible with other patient equipment.

The Wond’ry Makerspace is an extremely valuable tool/resource for our design team as we work towards developing a physical seating system that meets all the identified needs. Over the course of the next two semesters, we plan to take advantage of the 3D printers in order to develop miniature models of our current ideas that we can bring to our mentors at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital. These miniature physical models will allow us to better communicate our ideas and receive valuable feedback in return. Further, the power drills, drill press, and hand tools will all be useful in building the more advanced versions of our design, a Class I device.

A topic of discussion during the Makerspace seminar was rapid prototyping through the use of various materials like cardboard. This is something we plan to employ with our project. Cardboard will be a very useful tool in quickly developing scaled up versions of our seating system with the proper dimensions before using more expensive materials. With the help and guidance of Makerspace mentors, we will be able to make rapid adjustments and utilize a sounding board of engineers who will have a general perspective on the qualities and shortcomings of various iterations of the device.

In addition, we plan to take advantage of the Makerspace mentors as we investigate different materials and design ideas. Our seating system will be used for videofluoroscopic studies, which means that it is crucial for certain parts of it to be made of radiolucent material. The mentors will play an especially critical role during this search for suitable materials. We have already predicted that one of our greatest challenges will be designing the support system in the chair. Our chair will regularly be seating patients with little to no motor skills. This means that adequate head and trunk support must be available on the chair to accommodate these individuals at varying ages and disabilities. This will present a challenge because we will be looking for a material that is strong enough to support a full grown teenager, but all while still being malleable enough to adjust and manipulate for any age individuals. Ideally this material would be radiolucent, especially around the head and neck area so as to not impede the imaging. We hope to be able to pick the brains of the mentors for brainstorming ideas on materials and overall design approach when we are addressing these issues during the modeling phase since they know the workshop so well.

Weekly Write-Up: Managing Design Teams (Week 9) – 10/16/19

Before deciding on future pathways for our group, we first analyzed our group results for the Adaptive/Radical Innovator Survey. Katie was a mid Adaptive Innovator, John was a weak Adaptive Innovator, Noah was directly in between Adaptive and Radical, and Justin was a strong Radical Innovator. Based on these results, our group has a healthy mix of both types of innovation, and we believe our main predicted problem will be the effective mixing of these attributes to maximize our group’s results. The mixing of these individual characteristics and mannerisms will define future implications for how our group will tackle design challenges and unforeseen problems during product development.

We will aim to pursue a mix of A-Type and R-Type innovations, as both Noah and Justin work best in bursts and have creative ideas and innovations mostly while working hands-on with our project sponsors, and Katie and John will keep the group focused on the project for long term goals and mostly innovate after thinking on the design challenges for extended periods of time. With this in mind, we understand that we will need to create an environment that benefits both types of innovators on a regular basis. To accomplish this currently, we hold weekly design meetings on Wednesdays after lecture to define group goals for the week, review and reflect on interactions with our design contacts, and brainstorm on design innovations. These meetings benefit our Adaptive Innovators as they create a structure within which A-Type approaches to Innovation are benefitted. These meetings are also a great way to keep the group on track throughout the design process and create a space where team members can further address team dynamics and direction.

To address our Radical Innovators, we communicate with our design partners and attend weekly videofluoroscopic swallow studies at the nearby Children’s Hospital. These opportunities provide continued and constant exposure, hands-on experiences, and an excellent environment to innovate for Noah and Justin, especially as many of the patients in the studies encounter various challenges and need support structures in place while completing the study. A good example occurred this past week, where during one of the studies the group was able to observe a patient with no concerted motor control. The patient’s chair was specifically designed to support and protect the legs and trunk with apparatuses the group had not yet thought of. Because of this specific exposure, we now aim to add similar functionalities to our seating system.

In summary, our group has put in place practices to enhance and benefit both A-Type and R-Type innovators. We hope to continue to pursue both types of innovation, and we will continuously need to ensure that we are creating an environment and group dynamic that is both healthy and effective to achieving our group goals.

Weekly Write-Up: Safety (Week 11) – 10/30/19

This lecture focused on safety in the workspace and incorporating it into the planning environment. Much was mentioned on constant improvement and addressing of safety measures to ensure everyone’s needs—even those the deciding group cannot often see—are met on a daily basis. One of the most important underlying principles of this lecture was that no safety measure is too small. This idea encourages the bringing forth of small changes that eventually amount to large scale changes without the cost or massive amounts of effort.

Our group discussed the lecture topics in depth and reflected on how the proposed methods for best incorporating safety into one’s project could be smoothly implemented and integrated into our project space. One great idea we all agreed with was the idea of a “safety minute” that was coined by our lecturer. Basically, at the beginning of any of our meetings, the group would take five minutes to reflect on any current safety concerns they have noticed, no matter how small, and present them to the group. These concerns can then be addressed by multiple persons and handled accordingly. 

When considering safety in our project in a broad sense, our team agreed that much of what the lecturer was concerned about with construction workers was also applicable to those that would be using our design project in the near future. Many of our safety risks would revolve around being able to provide the proper safety restraints and support mechanisms for the patient and as many ease of use capabilities as possible for the healthcare professionals that will be using and manipulating our device many times in a given day. With these considerations, we have realized the importance of design parameters in thinking not only from a functionality standpoint, but also from the perspective of user safety and ease. Thus, we have identified some key areas of our design which will need to be cognizantly built around safety and ease of use.

From the patient’s perspective, our seating system must not be top-heavy and easily tilt-able. The base must be secure when not on wheels and able to support heavy loads. It must be impossible for a patient using the seating system to topple it with their own movement. The system must also include the current industry standards for support and safety of persons with no or little motor control, and these should be removable. All parts should be wipeable and washable, and there must be a secure, yet easily-removable belt system in place. From the provider’s perspective, the seating system must be easily adjustable and able to change between secure and moving states with ease to reduce long-term fatigue and possible injuries. The system should have some sort of locking mechanism unreachable by the patient so that the provider can perform a videofluoroscopic swallow study alone. Finally, the seating system must allow for the easy transfer of patients to and from their home seating systems, if any.

Weekly Write-Up: Professionalism (Week 13) – 11/13/19

This lecture focused on professionalism in the workspace from an engineering perspective. Primary topics touched upon included appearance, time management, interpersonal skills and many other important qualities. Presentation of yourself and your brand is an important component of how you conduct yourself in the industry. However, it is also crucial to understand and abide by the safety regulations of the setting in which you work. There are also subtleties to an office and what you are expected to wear. Some companies operate more formally, which requires more formal attire instead of clothing like jeans. Although it is easy to feel pressured to wear the right thing, but it is always alright to ask what is expected of you in your office environment. The way dress can even impact your chances for advancement because it can speak to your preparedness and awareness of what situation you are entering. 

 Social media has now become an important aspect of professionalism as well. Companies, in the new social networking era, are able and motivated to monitor the social media accounts of potential new hires. Therefore, it is good practice to keep accounts private and be aware of what you post and how it represents you and your image. A company has limited information on who you are before they hire you, so their perception of who you are based on your social media presence is magnified.

Essential in all relationships, whether it is with friends, teachers or in the workplace, interpersonal skills expand beyond the one person you may be interacting with at the time. Networks expand across many people and overlap which makes the transition of knowledge and information extremely quick and accessible. Your reputation can travel just as quickly so failure to establish positive relationships can hinder your ability to make other connections and people within your industry. Sometimes engaging with coworkers and even your superiors in side conversations and establishing a human relationship can be very beneficial to your professional development and success. These skills also transfer well to team settings where communication and respect and fundamental cornerstones when trying to accomplish a difficult task. 

When considering professionalism in our project, we work with physicians who have a very busy schedule and important priorities. Therefore, we need to keep in mind how we present ourselves and convey that we take the project seriously and care about the work we are doing to help them. This involves engaged conversations and respectful and timely responses to emails. We have worked hard to develop a symbiotic relationship with our physicians so we can better understand the difficulties with the current design and how we can help. When we do present new ideas we make sure to show that we respect their time through how we dress and carry ourselves in the meeting.

 

Meeting : 1/7/20

-everyone complete training this week for Wondry makerspace: 7-8 pm mon thru thurs

-get in touch with Dr. Galloway, 

-tumbleforms (order), adhesive, rails, hydraulic lift ← Dr. Walker

-first prototype of plywood and pvc

-starting on chair design (removable pads)

 

Action Items:

 

1. Email Kaitlyn about Special Tomato seating systems
2. Gather list of materials and parts to order
3. Fill out the order forms and get clearance from Dr. Walker
4. Makerspace Training (Katie and Noah tn, John and Justin tmrw)
5. Katie contact seller, ask about radiolucent, picture of child sitting in it from the side

Meeting 1/13:

https://www.agssalonequipment.com/bracket-piece.html

https://www.agssalonequipment.com/barber-chair-base-heavy-duty-hydraulic-base-for-barber-chairs.html

–Meeting with Kaitlyn and Co. (after confirming meeting with Dr. Galloway)

-John update website!

-Justin order barber chair base and bracket

-Katie and Noah order size 1 expedited (talk to Tina Shaw), sizes 3 and 5 normal

https://www.adaptivemall.com/special-tomato-soft-touch-sitter.html

–look into coating or apoxy for the chairs (Dr. Galloway)

–Update slides (add new sketch, add new updates)

 

Presentation 1/14:

• Design justification of part orders
• 45 pound weight limit on the base if the design is not on wheels
• 3 nuggets
  • CAD presentation
    • Dimensions
    • Weight
    • Material

Presentation 1/28:

We presented our first physical prototype and second CAD model to Dr. Walker.

Feedback from Dr. Walker:

• Incorporate x-ray machine into CAD and add labels/more descriptions
• Determine range of motion and angles of rotation
• Better articulate x-ray machine specifications in presentation
• Consider vertical moment
• Make problems statement more specific –> need clear subject