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Shaking up the status quo
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10/04/2008
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A new medical product has been brought rapidly to market that should greatly benefit patients both in developing and developed countries. Tom Shelley reports
A multi-purpose medical instrument for eye, ear and throat inspection has been brought from concept to prototype stage in eight weeks by taking advantage of every IT aid along the way.
The instrument is powered by being shaken. A cylindrical bar magnet is made to move back and forth through a coil. Shaking the device for 30 seconds generates enough electricity to keep the light illuminated for 10 minutes.
And while the idea of generating power in this way is not new – in Eureka in March 2004, for example, we carried the story, ‘Tumbling magnet generates extra power’ – this may well be the first time that the technology has ever been applied to medical instruments.
Other features of the ‘Shakerscope’ include a water- and dust-proof outer shell made from antibacterial plastics. The internal mechanism can easily be removed, so the outer shell can undergo high temperature or chemical sterilisation.
The idea arose from the experiences of Dr David Williams undertaking voluntary work in countries such as Nepal and Zambia. Inspired by products such as the Clockwork Radio and hand-powered torches, he and colleague John Dingley – both consultant anaesthetists in Swansea – set out to create a self-powered, rugged and reliable ophthalmoscope for eye examinations. By taking parts from existing products, they were able to produce a demonstration prototype very quickly to prove the basic ideas.
To take the idea farther, Williams obtained funding from the Welsh Assembly Government and approached the Welsh National Centre for Product Design and Development Research (PDR), based at the University of Wales Institute in Cardiff, to redesign the device.
With an eye to future markets in the developed, as well as the developing, world, they recognised that the usefulness of the product could be greatly enhanced by adding interchangeable medical device attachments to inspect ears and throats, as well as eyes. A range of detachable device heads, including laryngoscopes, ophthalmoscopes and ostoscopes, were conceptualised and developed.
Senior industrial designer Ashley Bryant says Adobe Illustrator was used for early concepts, SolidWorks for 3D mechanical design and Autodesk Alias for photo concepts. Prototypes were created directly from the CAD models by using stereolithography to create a master model, from which silicone mould tools were made.
“Information collation and concept generation took three weeks, concept development took one week, development engineering took two weeks and production of ten-off prototypes took two weeks,” says Bryant.
The original intention was to produce parts to test form, fit and function, but the silicone tools have been used to produce short-run production parts. These were trialled with success by the armed forces on military patients and casualties last year in Afghanistan.
Last November, the device won an ‘iF’ (international Design Forum) Award in the medical and healthcare category, PDR’s fourth in the last three years. The inventors plan to manufacture the products commercially in Wales.
Pointers
* Maximum use of IT at all stages has helped bring a unique medical product quickly to commercial use and at an early pre-production stage to benefit patients
* The device incorporates a light that is powered by shaking
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Author
Tom Shelley
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