R.I.C.E. Device

According to ACSM, 25,000 Americans suffer from an ankle sprain each day (9 million annually). Ankle sprains account for almost half of all sports injuries.  The treatment of ankle sprains in the U.S. costs more than $2 billion each year.  The idea I have is not a solution to the problem, but a way to minimize the time of healing.  A device or system needs to be created that carries out all of the four functions recommended by medical staff when a sprained ankle happens: rest, ice, compress, and elevate.

Definition: The RICE Device is a medical influenced system that is based off of thermochemical principles. RICE stands for Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation. These are all key components in healing something such as a sprained ankle.  The system consists of a cooling/heating pad that attaches to a tripod stand. This pad can also be compressed by a pump similar to that of a sphygmomanometer (medical device that applies pressure to arm to measure blood pressure).  The black rectangular prism in the CAD sketch represents the pump similar to a sphygmomanometer.  The heat and cooling of the pad come from the reaction of menthol and methyl salicylate to create an oscillating cooling and heating sensation.  This is the same reaction that is present in IcyHot® and other coolants.

This is my personal computer-aided design (CAD) of the R.I.C.E. Device.  In conclusion, The R.I.C.E. Device would cut down the cost of healing a sprained or bruised ankle because one would not have to buy separate parts like ice, a heating pad, and something to prop the foot at an angle above the hip.  The device would also cut down the time of healing.  With an apparatus performing four different tasks at the same time, one would be fully healed in several weeks (if used daily) as opposed to a couple months.  Millions of people would recover from ankle sprains every year.  I really wish I had access to this device early into my first year at the University.  The R.I.C.E. Device would also have a high chance of getting sponsored by a sports team in the NBA or NFL since many of the players in those sports experience the injuries.

Bevel Razor

            Bevel is a company dedicated to making facial/salon and beauty products for those of African descent.  I will analyze the effective design of the specialized Bevel razor and razor blade.  People of African descent tend to have much thicker and curlier facial hair than those of European descent.  Using common razors like Gillette sometimes cause razor bumps because the multiple blades cause for a really closer shave.  When the thick curly hair grows back into other pores which creates painful ingrown hairs and forms razor bumps.  This look does not look very professional nor clean, so razor bumps need to be eliminated immediately.

            The Bevel razor contains a single blade designed to cut facial hairs close but not too close.  Most men using the blade will keep a slight “shadow”` in the lower facial area where the beard grows.  The blade is soft against the skin because of its one side with 90 degrees.  I immediately saw the depletion of razor bumps when I switched to this Bevel single blade approach.  It is very sleek and smooth.

            The Bevel razor is also very hefty.  This allows the user to not apply any pressure to the face and still get the razor to cut.  Disposable razors are very lightweight and force the user to apply pressure to cut hairs.  When excessive pressure is applied, one cuts hairs under the skin; this causes ingrown hairs because your skin moves back into place and covers the tip of the curly hair.

            Multi-blade razors tug and pull hairs; this causes inflammation of skin and rashes of razor bumps.  The blades of the razors are place too tightly together and hairs easily become trapped.  When they are trapped, they are voraciously pulled out, causing irritation and swelling.  The single blade approach of the Bevel razor prevents the hairs from getting trapped and prevents irritation.  Irritation is also caused when skin is manually pulled to get a closer shave.  Many men are guilty of this.  This stretching of the skin causes the skin to fold back over the curled hairs.

            The Bevel Shaving System is a great tool for men with curly hair and people with a history of ingrown hairs and razor bumps.  This has been a great razor for me and my relatives alike.  The sleek design even makes those whom have disposable razors jealous!

Samsung Galaxy S III

            I have owned and used the Samsung Galaxy S3 (cell phone) for over 2 years now.  I had it when it was the hottest phone on the market; now, it is everything but that.  I am going to write about the frustrating design of the Samsung Galaxy S3.  On its website, Samsung says, “the minimal organic design of the Samsung GALAXY S III is reflected in its smooth and gentle curves, while its human-centric nature provides an ergonomic and comfortable experience with enhanced usability.”  One does not pay much attention to the ergonomic or comfortable experience because that is expected in a phone and is now usually defined by the size and shape of one’s phone protection case.

            The front glass atop the display on the phone is one of the most fragile compounds on the market.  I have personally cracked a grand total of three S3s.  If one dropped, even with the case, it had a higher chance of cracking than any iPhone or any other android device.  It has been a significant inconvenience to either get it fixed or buy a new phone (usually it is cheaper to buy a new phone).

            The main, most commonly sold color of the Samsung Galaxy S3 “pebble blue.”  This is a gender neutral color so it could be used by both males and females.  I currently have the pebble blue color.  The color is not instantly attracting but it is sleek and nice to look at.  I would prefer the “titanium grey” or “marble white” though.  The titanium grey makes it look as if the phone is actually made of a titanium compound.  This would give the phone a false characteristic of strength and durability.  Cellular phones are made these days to not be durable without a case to protect it from drops and excessive force.  The marble white phone looks very sleek and clean.  It appeals most to my eye out of the colors offered.

            The camera placement on the Galaxy S3 is strategically placed so that one does not accidentally cover it with a finger.  One thing that I wish was different in the design is the speaker placement.  The external speaker for “speaker-phone” or video watching is placed on the back, the opposite side of the screen.  This projects sound in the other direction and is not efficient when doing something that requires seeing and listening in loud spaces.

            Overall, the Samsung Galaxy S3 is not bad.  It is a phone that is very capable of all smartphone abilities.  It has a camera and external speaker.  It is not as durable as many customers would like, but with a case, its design is very functional with a few flaws like speaker position and front glass durability.

Christmas Sweaters

           Around this time of year, America loves to see one thing: ugly Christmas sweaters.  Christmas sweaters come in all shapes, sizes, and designs.  The picture above is an image taken from socialitelife.com and it is a true representation of how ugly and gaudy these sweaters can get.  I will analyze the design of the typical homemade Christmas sweater (even though there is no typical type).

            First, a Christmas sweater is usually made by starting off with a blank, solid color sweater purchased from a store of Goodwill.  The sweater is usually a heavy/durable cotton material that can support added weight.  People also like to pick sweaters based on a yearly color theme that they might have.  It may seem to the unknowledgeable person that after a sweater is obtained, the maker gets a decorated Christmas tree and dumps all of its contents onto the sweater.  This is slightly inaccurate; there is actually an art to this.  A second color made of some cut out fabric from an old t-shirt or anything laying around the house is first stapled to the sweater to usually create snow or a setting of some sort.  Sometimes, this stapled fabric will make a reindeer or snowman. 

The next step is huge.  Actual decorations can be added to start creating one’s ideal Christmas figure like a snowman, reindeer, gingerbread house, Christmas tree, etc.  One’s sweater can also have all of those things just listed like the one above.  There is usually a step that involves adding fuzzy streamers or beaded necklaces.  These items are typically added using a hot glue gun.  The hot glue gun, staples, and excessive decorations make it so that the Christmas sweater is not washable in the washing machine unless it is dissembled.

Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) can be highly dangerous on Christmas sweater.  The idea is super cool because one is literally always glowing with holiday cheer, but it comes at a price.  There are many fire hazards when wearing LEDs that are plugged into a portable battery or run on an internal battery.  The heat emitting off of the bulbs could ignite or melt many of the loose hanging or loosely wound fabrics on the sweater, resulting in a SUPER CHRISTMAS EXPLOSION (or just immediate stop, drop, and rolling)!! 

G-Shock Durability

I love the look and durability of G-Shocks.  Above is an image of a GA110AC-4A watch.  Its vibrant colors seem to popping out of the computer screen.  I am not writing this design analysis to praise its stunning appearance, I am writing to praise its outstanding durability. 

G-Shocks, made by Casio, are known by their extreme durability.  This is because of the hollow case construction and its strong molded resin.

The hollow case structure allows the watch to be shock resisting.  This is practically where the term “G-Shock” comes from.  The casing is stationed in a gyroscope-like position over the functioning section of the watch.  I find this very interesting because most watches have the casing directly in contact with the functional section. 

The all-direction covering of the buttons on the watch make it so that the buttons are less likely to break.  The only pressure that will be applied to these buttons are intentionally force by the user. Most watches have external buttons that change the time and functions of the watch; this is not a useful design.

Applesauce Container

I love applesauce and I eat about two containers of Mott’s Applesauce a day.  I feel like now is a great time to analyze the design of the applesauce container.  The container uses color, product display, and a natural setting to lure potential buyers.

            The bright yellow top foil of the applesauce is very attractive to people walking past in a grocery store.  I initially got into applesauce because it caught my eye when I was shopping with my mom and I begged her to get it.  This simple yellow color acts as a bait children and adults alike.  The yellow color also works as distinction for infants getting fed applesauce.  They can associate the yellow top with applesauce.  By this association, infants can either accept or deny the food based on past experience with the food item.

            The applesauce container uses great product display.  Product display is the ability to see the product through the packaging.  One can see the actual applesauce through the clear plastic packaging.  Studies have shown that a person is more likely to buy something when they can see the product they are going to consume.  This maybe because the buyer can see that the product is safe to consume and actually there.  This is the mission of Mott’s® when making this product with clear plastic packaging.

            The applesauce packaging also has a natural setting.  The “O” in the Mott’s is depicted as a sun radiating throughout the lid, essentially consuming the foil lid with the yellow color.  The lid also has green leaves to depict nice weather in spring or summer.  It shows delicious apples, one of the apples sliced in half to further show the origin of the product.  This natural setting immediately makes the buyer think of the word “organic” or “healthy.”  

Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch

One of the many possible solutions to the forearm crutch would be Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch.  The Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch was thought of by Jackson Jansen through existing technology in the biomedical engineering and biophysics field. Prosthetic legs, made for Paralympic runner Oscar Pistorius by a company called Flex-Foot Cheetahs invented by Van Phillips, inspired the idea of carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer blades attached to the lower body of crutches.   

There are many advantages of the Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch over prior art.  Current medical crutches apply a large amount of force to the human axilla (underarm) while in use.  This can cause a painful rash which is detrimental to one’s mobility even further. The dampening of this force would be created by the oscillating spring effect of the carbon-fiber instead of a solid uninterrupted force that is supported directly by the axilla.

Another solution to counteract the pain causing design of the medical crutch is an ergonomic and cushioned crutch pads.  The crutch pads of a medical are located at the very top of the crutch and goes directly under the axilla.  This usually has a distinctive dark grey tint.  The material is made out of a synthetic thermoplastic that is molded to a certain temperature to fit a given design.  The thermoplastic pads are meant to work as cushions but they do not do a good job doing so.  The Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch is much more comfortable to the user making it very user friendly and healthy.  The crutch pad of the Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch has a larger surface area allowing the pressure under one’s arm to significantly decrease.  The crutch pad will be in the shape of a semicircle to maximize the area to utilize the axilla and lower deltoids. The knowledge of general physics mechanics tells us that pressure is equal to the force over the area; pressure is inversely related to the area.  Therefore, the larger the area, the smaller the pressure.  This equates to even more pressure being dampened while using crutches.  The Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch is also very strong and capable of supporting an ample amount of weight.  The aluminum shaft of the forearm crutch is very skinny in many designs like the Lumex Deluxe edition.  Forearm crutches like these have a 2 inch diameter shaft which is not as supportive as a 4 inch diameter shaft attached to carbon-fiber blades.  The forearm crutches like the Lumex Deluxe edition are prone to snapping if bent excessively or if they were to fall on the ground repeatedly because of the small diameter shaft.  The Ergonomic Flexi-Crutches are very durable mostly because of the thick aluminum double shaft and the carbon-fiber polymer.

One of the most important features of the Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch is that it is very user friendly.  One can use the Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch with no crutch experience and very little instruction.  The style in with crutches are used can vary.  A mistake with the common medical crutch is that people tend to swing them laterally, too wide, or outward, too in-front.  This can be detrimental or even add pain to one’s current health condition.  When swinging forearm or normal crutches too wide, this creates a longer distance to the center of mass and balance which in-turn, causes the loss of balance and the creates a high risk of falling.  When swinging the forearm or normal crutches too far, it creates the inverse effect of swinging one’s body too far (the distance that the crutches were swung).  This responsive motion causes the user to lose balance at the end of the cycle when his or her feet hit the ground.  This is because his or her velocity increases and accelerates in mid-air and has a significantly different final velocity than initial velocity.  When contact is finally made with the ground by the user, the user will most likely stumble, which may cause further injury.  The Ergonomic Flexi-Clutch works well to counteract these occurrences with the spring potential and torque of the carbon-fiber blades  always apply energy back to the center of the double shafted frame of the crutch.  In any orientation the Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch will allow the user to keep his or her balance much more easily than any other type of medical crutch on the market.  This is important because it reduces further injury to those that have existing injuries, hence the reason to initially need to use crutches.

The Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch is also efficient for walking up steps.  The common practice with forearm and common crutch when walking up steps is that one takes off and hold the crutches as one walks up each step.  This is very inefficient and could be painful to those that have serious injuries in which weight cannot be applied to a certain leg.  The Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch would have a spring effect when going up stairs.  It would be fairly easy even for those that are not athletic to “hop” up the stairs using the carbon-fiber blades.  This hopping effect would be a natural motion made by the oscillating carbon-fibers in the blades.  This action is made safe by the hard synthetic elastomer on the foot of each blade to prevent slipping.

The Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch would have a lot of competition on the market, but it would make a smart alternative to those crutches that cause pain such as rashes, axilla bruising, and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.  This medical crutch would not slow down the daily lifestyle of student athletes or busy elderly people compared to other crutches on the market.  The public is ready to see new creations in biomedical engineering.  The common crutch has been around for over 30 years. An aesthetically pleasing carbon-fiber blade attached to an ergonomic crutch would be desired over the common and forearm crutch. 

Forearm Crutch

               When I sprained my ankle and strained tendons in my calf, I was on the standard medical crutches for several weeks.  The problem with the standard medical crutch is that it causes rashes under the arm and makes the causes pain to the underarm as well with all of the excessive force applied to such a sensitive part of the body.

Designed in the United Kingdom and used mostly in Europe, the forearm crutch is a type of crutch with a cuff at the top, instead of a crutch pad, to wrap around one’s arm.  The cuff is a 3/4 filled circle that secures the arm of the user and allows for easy detachment in case of a fall, which is common when using any type of crutch.

The forearm crutch is faulted in that it influences one to apply all of the force of the body to two parallel handles attached to the shafts of the forearm crutches.  This means that the handles are very likely to bend and potentially break due to the intense pressure.  The force on the handles of the Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch is dampened because of the carbon-fiber blades bend and lessen the normal force between the crutch and ground and the handles/underarm pad.  Many people develop minor Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) while using crutches that give a lot of normal force back to the wrists.  Carpal Tunnel Syndrome occurs when the median nerve, which runs from the forearm into the palm of the hand, becomes pressed or squeezed at the wrist at high forces or more commonly with an uncomfortable, repetitive task.  The forearm crutch definitely influences high force and repetitive wrist usage which may cause damage to the median nerve causing CTS.  

Traditional Mousetrap

My grandma has several mousetraps set around her house and I have always wondered how they actually work.  I went about this by rendering my own mousetrap based on the “Victor® Pest Mouse Traps” design and analyzing how that would work.

The purpose of the traditional mousetrap is to maim interloping rodents in domestic human residencies.  There are two simple steps in the process: set-up and mutilation. 

A bait is set on the catch to lure raiding rodents.  After the user has placed the bait on the catch, the hold-down bar is placed under the lip of the catch which is behind the elevated platform.  This increases the tension and potential energy of the hammer.  Since the hammer is attached to the spring, the hammer retains the same wound force of the spring and the terminal wire of the hammer voraciously pushes against the hold-down bar in the positive y-direction.  This stationary torque and stored potential energy is anticipating the release of the hold-down bar.

 When the rodent attempts to grab and consume the bait, the catch lowers which cause the lip to rise; the lip then releases the hold-down bar.  This action allows the potential energy stored in the spring to be released by the hold-down bar.  The hammer then applies a fatal ceasing force once its terminal or side wire hits the invading rodent, rotating approximately 180° in 3 milliseconds.