Progress Reports
Final Report
Week of March 30
This week we started targeting some of our new deliverables including a business model canvas which can be seen below.
We have continued designing a CAD model to serve as our final design/prototype.
Additionally, this week was spent designing sketches for the final seat attachment for the Special Tomato chairs. We did our best to use materials we already possess and those from McMaster-Carr for easily implementation of virtual design.
Week of March 15
Over the past couple of weeks there have been a lot of obstacles to overcome with national developments regarding Covid-19. We have fully transitioned to online communication and design thinking. Before moving online, we met with Dr. Galloway about materials to be implemented. We discussed burlap and epoxy composites as well as high impact polystyrene. These materials are light and relatively ductile so that we can tailor the structure to the curvature of the special tomato seat. Possible methods to obtain an exact trace of the curvature is through different software and CAD modeling.
We were also able to start developing a weight bearing prototype and cut aluminum framing in the Featheringill design studio. Since working on this project we have had to move all of our materials off Vanderbilt’s campus before the shut down and have been figuring out how to move forward.
We contacted the physicians at Monroe Carroll and they are undergoing significant changes as well which was to be expected. We still plan to work with them week in and week out to develop a design that they can present to their overseer as some sort of deliverable so that the project can continue to move forward. Over the last week, we have continued to work on the design and dimensions of our final prototype and incorporated some of the materials we plan on using in our CAD model. Moving forward we will start developing some documentation on where we believe the points of risk our with our design and other predictive model failures. We will also start conducting more market research to obtain a better scope of where our design can be implemented and how it can be adapted for other use cases.
Week of February 16
This week, the bulk of our time went to final design sketches and measurements.
The group met several times in the Wondry to brainstorm booster seat ideas and sketch out the frame for the final base.
The group also made it into the VFSS clinic with out current prototype and were able to see how the design worked with the machine and environment. From this visit, we were able to get lots of helpful feedback from the clinicians to redesign the next prototype. We were also able to see first hand what measurements need to be changed to fit with the machine better and what functions need to be reconsidered based off of the x-rays field of view.
After this visit, we feel confident moving forward and purchasing our material for the base of our final design. We hope to begin construction early next week.
Additionally, we have an upcoming meeting with Dr. Galloway planned for Tuesday to iron out design and material of the booster seats.
Week of February 10
This week, we presented our full-size physical prototype and updated CAD model to Dr. Walker.
Week of February 3
Accomplished:
- Worked extensively with Makerspace mentors to make a full-sized physical prototype
- Met with the Physicians at Monroe Carroll to present our first physical prototype and receive feedback
- We went through our presentation from the previous week
- Discussed future steps/requirements for testing equipment and gaining hospital approval
- Took measurements of vertical range that X-ray arm can accommodate
- Can accommodate all chair sizes, but physicians would still like a booster seat for Size 1 so that it is easier to feed a small infant
- Physicians confirmed that material of Special Tomato chairs seems better for cleaning than what they had years ago
Tasks:
- This week we received the hydraulic lift that we ordered
- Began building first full-size physical prototype
- Hydraulic lift implemented for 70 degrees of rotation
- Seating system made out of plywood, MDF, and PVC pipe
- Industrial wheels with sturdy lock for movement and stabilization
- Plywood base will ultimately be aluminum (stronger and better to lower center of gravity)
- Used SolidWorks to trace appropriate curvature and design direct base for sitters as well as sliding mechanism for incline/decline motion
- Pieces created using laser cutter on MDF
- Confirmed dimensions of design (28 inch base height for Size 3 sitter and 34-36 inch base height for Size 1 sitter)
Planned:
- Design and make a direct base for the Special Tomato sitters that matches curvature
- First design did not fit curve properly
- Determine weak points and observed flaws with current model
- Set up another meeting with the physicians to present newest full-sized model
- Test out height options
- Continue determining necessary procedure and forms for hospital testing
- Hash out the exact dimensions, materials and weights for the CAD model
Week of January 27
This week, we presented our first physical prototype and second CAD model to Dr. Walker. Our new updates are as follows:
CAD Model – SolidWorks:
- Overall weight: 201.71 pounds
- Floor to seat base height: 26.6 inches
- Specific materials:
- Aluminum base and legs
- Steel front supporting legs
- Steel hydraulic lift
- Composite plastic base for chair
- Hydraulic lift used to incline and decline chair
- Special Tomato Sitter will strap into plastic base for easy switching between sizes
Identified Strengths and Weaknesses of Physical Prototype:
- Strengths we see
- Utilizes a simpler, single pole hydraulic lift design for reclining in the rear
- Universal anchor points that all three seat sizes fit in. No seat modifications necessary
- More stable than the telescoping model
- What we have learned
- Current design cannot adjust height
- The importance of this is will depend on the measurements we take later this week
- Range of the chair angle must increase
- Foot supports must be attached to base
- Current design cannot adjust height
Design Challenges and Needs:
- Height range of motion
- Size restraints for the large model
- Must serve Size 1 Sitter (25” height) to Size 5 (44” height)
- Structure mobility
- Drop down axle
- Industrial wheels with a hard stop
- Materials and weight
- Lowering the center of mass
- Needs to move easily on wheels
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
Future Plans:
- Bring Special Tomato Sitters into hospital procedure room to test height limitations
- Complete CAD model to determine overall mass of design
- Bring in multiple design ideas to speech pathologists and technicians to gain feedback
Week of January 20
Background:
Our design task is to fabricate an adjustable positioning system for video fluoroscopic swallow studies. Over the course of the fall semester we communicated with the physicians at Monroe Carroll Children’s hospital to discuss the needs of this project. Some of the features that were discussed were radio-translucence of the seat material, a reclining feature, and a few other needs that are outlined in our presentation from the previous week. Following these meetings, we conducted research on different chair materials and systems already developed that we could incorporate into our design. The background research enabled us to brainstorm more effectively because we knew what resources could be at our disposal along with our constraints. Prior to this week we started ordering parts for our design. We placed an order for three Special Tomato Soft Touch Sitters as well as an order for a hydraulic lift to incline the chair. A detailed outline of what we have accomplished recently and tasks we plan on tackling in the near future is outlined below.
Accomplished:
- Met with Dr. Galloway to discuss design ideas regarding the reclining feature of the chair and how to reduce the wear and tear on the chair material from chemical cleaning
Meeting Notes:
- Sealant/paint for chair – needs to withstand repeated washings with bleach wipes
- https://www.adaptivemall.com/special-tomato-soft-touch-sitter.html
- Sealant probably won’t work
- Ask how long chairs lasted in past – might be worth buying new chairs each year
- Maybe a poncho? Paw Patrol characters on it or something
- Material for base and overall weight
- Extruded aluminum for shell and metal plate on top
- See Makeathon design
- Aluminum might be strong enough and then can add weight strategically
- Wheel design
- See woodcutter for drop down wheels
- Hopefully can buy online
- Rotation for chair
- Continuous movement
- Pool chair design
- Slider
- Prototype design
- Make out of foam board first – much smaller version
- Then move on to full scale plywood model
- CAD design
- Telescoping design
- Ex. music stand with screw to loosen/lift and lock
- Should put numbers so that they can jot down specific setting for each kid based on necessary height and incline
- Key is finding all the parts and minimizing custom design
- Dr. Galloway also showed us the resources available to us in the Makerspace and recommended strategies for rapid prototyping
- He suggested we create multiple models out of foam board to present to the physicians so that they feel included in the design process
- Met with the Physicians at Monroe Carroll to discuss our progress thus far as well as our ideas with the Special Tomato Soft Touch Sitter
- We went through our presentation from the previous week
- Discussed possibility of having patients come into to test run the final design later in the semester
- Took more measurements of the space specific to the restraints of the chair ordered
- Discussed the warranty of the Special Tomato Chair and if that is a feasible solution to the wear and tear issue
Tasks:
- This week we received all three Special Tomato Chairs ordered
- Worked on developing a CAD model of our design ideas
- Shifting our focus on the reclining feature of the chair
- Believe the hydraulic lift can be used to raise and lower the chair angle instead of a more bulky lawn chair system
- This week we started developing physical prototypes
- PVC pipe to simulate the hydraulic lift
- Wood base to that would be some sort of aluminum, weighted material in the final design
- Foam Board and Duct Tape to simulate the chair
- The model is scaled down to get a better sense of dimensions and what factors we may not have taken into account
- Will continue to prototype with foam board to show to the physicians
Planned:
- Continued prototyping with the materials in the Makerspace
- Set up another meeting with the physicians to present miniature design models
- Develop various solutions around the reclining feature
- Hash out the exact dimensions, materials and weights for the CAD model
Needs:
- Tackle the issue of a drop down axle vs. industrial wheels for seating system mobility
- Decide what material to be used in the base
- How to weigh down the base of the system to be more resistant to toppling
Week of January 13
This presentation provides an overview of our project to date, including the problem statement, needs assessment, updated design progress, and future design path.