Lecture # 5

1 Institute of Bio-Medical Technology, LUMHS.

deliberate purposeful planning,
applied to assistive technology,
design skills of R.E engineer makes him
different from other members of
rehabilitation team,
Heuristics, one of the oldest design methods
applied to assistive technology,
Using heuristics one can imagines that the
device is completed and that the consumer is
using it,
Helps to solve complex problems.
2 Institute of Bio-Medical Technology, LUMHS.
Basic step in design process is to define when
the problem is solved
Once it is completed R.E engineer will sit
with the consumer and discuss the problem
which consumer has identified to improve to
working conditions.
To over come these type of problems one has
huge past experience or can do brain
storming.
There are two rules of brain stroming;
1) ideas should meet the need,
2) criticism of any sort is forbidden.
3 Institute of Bio-Medical Technology, LUMHS.
Best idea selected after brain storming and
added to the final design.
4 Institute of Bio-Medical Technology, LUMHS.
R.E is multidisplinary field,
Knowledge and techniques from different disciplines must
be utilized to design technological solutions,
most relevant principles depend on the particular problem
being examined
For example,
principles from the fields of electronic and communication
engineering are paramount when designing an
environmental control system that is to be integrated with
the users battery-powered wheelchair.
When the goal is to develop an implanted functional
electrical stimulation orthosis for an upper limb impaired
by spinal cord injury,
principles from neuromuscular physiology, biomechanics,
biomaterials, and control systems would be the most
applicable.
5 Institute of Bio-Medical Technology, LUMHS.
Rehabilitation engineering is inherently
design oriented.
Creative process of identifying needs and
then devising an assistive device to fill those
needs.
A systematic approach is essential to
successfully complete a rehabilitation
project.
Key elements of the design process involve
the following sequential steps: analysis,
synthesis, evaluation, decision, and
implementation.
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thinking about possible solutions,
careful analysis of the problem or need,
Rehabilitation engineers first must determine where,
when, and how often the problem arises
What is the environment or the task situation?
How have others performed the task?
What are the environmental constraints (size, speed,
weight, location, physical interface, etc.)?
What are the psychosocial constraints (user preferences,
support of others, gadget tolerance, cognitive abilities,
and limitations)?
What are the financial considerations (purchase price,
rental fees, trial periods, maintenance and repair
arrangements)?
7 Institute of Bio-Medical Technology, LUMHS.
Answers to these questions will require
diligent investigation and quantitative data
such as the weight and size to be lifted, the
shape and texture of the object to be
manipulated, and the operational features of
the desired device. An excellent endpoint of
problem analysis would be a list of
operational features or performance
specifications that the ideal solution
should possess.
8 Institute of Bio-Medical Technology, LUMHS.
Develop a set of performance specifications for an
electromechanical device to raise and lower the
lower leg of a wheelchair user (to prevent edema).
Solution
A sample set of performance specifications about the
ideal mechanism might be written as follows:
Be able to raise or lower leg in 5 s
Independently operable by the wheelchair occupant
Have an emergency stop switch
Compatible with existing wheelchair and its leg rests
Quiet operation
Entire adaptation weighs no more than five pounds
9 Institute of Bio-Medical Technology, LUMHS.
ideas for solving the problem,
synthesis of possible solutions usually follows
the analysis of the problem,
creative activity that is guided by previously
learned engineering principles and supported
by handbooks, design magazines, product
catalogs, and consultation with other
professionals,
a deeper understanding of the problem
design process includes sketches and
technical descriptions of each trial solution.
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two or three most promising solutions should
undergo further evaluation,
via field trials with mockups, computer
simulations, and/or detailed mechanical
drawings,
the end user and other stakeholders in the
problem and solution should be consulted,
Experimental results from field trials should be
carefully recorded, possibly on videotape, for
later review.
use a quantitative comparison chart to rate how
well each solution meets or exceeds the
performance specifications and operational
characteristics based on the analysis of the
problem.
11 Institute of Bio-Medical Technology, LUMHS.
After comparing the various promising
solutions, more than one may appear equally
satisfactory.
the final decision may be made
may involve consulting with someone else
who may have encountered a similar
problem.
12 Institute of Bio-Medical Technology, LUMHS.
To fabricate, fit, and install the final (or
best) solution requires additional project
planning that, depending on the size of the
project, may range from a simple list of tasks
to a complex set of scheduled activities
involving many people with different skills.
13 Institute of Bio-Medical Technology, LUMHS.
Design a power wheelchair for use by people with
quadriplegia which can be used indoor and
outdoor.
Gel Cell batteries for cost and durability
Servo amplifer in full H-bridge (moves chair forward
and backward)
12 V Permant magnet d.c motor provides high torque
2 batteries in series
Oil filled sealed gear box to keep noise and
maintainance down
Chromium molybdenum steel alloy for frame (high
strngth)
Pneumatic tires (shock absorbtion)
Joystick (limited upper-limb function)

14 Institute of Bio-Medical Technology, LUMHS.
Thanks
15 Institute of Bio-Medical Technology, LUMHS.