Utilizing the equipment in University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign

Jenna wearing the C-Leg protection we’ve designed.

Hi guys, as the semester is over, I just wanted to tell you guys about the awesome equipments that are located all around our school! When I first took this class, I wish I had knowledge to these equipment, instead of searching for them here and there. I have a list of equipment that you guys can utilize to create prototypes in the future! Even though you are not an art major like me, you will have full access to these equipment I am going to be telling you guys. This process is based on my process of our group project, the C-Leg protection. I will take you guys through each step and how we came to our final prototype at the Make-A-Thon.

Located everywhere:

  1. Brainstorming and Ideation:
Jenna’s C-Leg sketch.

This is the very basic and most important step when it comes to design. In order to create a successful design, you need to specify the user and start brainstorming for opportunities. Come up with a few questions and search for your target user. Then ask them those questions and try to find an opportunity. For an example, our group found an opportunity to create a prosthetic leg protection for our user, Jenna. Based on the interview, you will start brainstorming different ideations. This process should be very quick and should always be open to opportunities. For me, the most important part was to keep in touch with the target user, so we know we are in the right track. So, our group drew a picture of Jenna’s leg and constantly referred back to the picture, to make sure we were on track. Throughout our entire process, we had to revisit this step multiple times, because we had to change out design. And this is natural. Do not rush this step, since you might get inspired by the most unexpected ideation.

Located in the Maker’s Lab:

  1. 3D scanner

After you have a good insight of your direction, the next step is to make a 3D model of the product you are basing off of. For my case, we had Jenna come in with her prosthetic leg and we had it scanned using the “Occipital Structure 3D Sensor with Precision bracket”. This program allows the user to scan an object and turn it into an Obj file which could later on be converted into a stl file by using “Scrulptris”. The more complicated the object is, the more time the program needs in order to read the data. For the prosthetic leg, it took us about 15 minutes in total to scan the entire leg. It is really cool to see the model slowly mold into a 3D file while you are scanning.

2. Fusion 360 and Cura

With the obj file is converted to a stl file using “Scrulptris”, you can open the file in “Fusion 360” if you need further modification. For an example, you can add more bulge to a certain area or fill in the holes of the object. If the file has a rough texture, “Scrulptris” will be able to smoothen out the rough surface of the object. This is very important. If you don’t smoothen out the surface and make sure you have no holes, the 3D scan will fail and you will have to start over all again. So, you should always make sure you do it right at the first time. After you send the file into Cura, you can change the density of the object. For my model which does not have a lot of body structure, I have a 15 percent density which is enough to be used as a model. You should ask the workers for better insights on which density to use because it will determine how long the 3D print will take. For our C-Leg model, it took us a total of 10 hours to print out the three separate models. This may not be applicable for everyone but with this C-Leg model, our team saved a lot of time and effort to make it accurate as the actual model. At the end, even without Jenna at the Make-A-Thon, the model fit Jenna’s C-Leg perfectly.

Located in the Fab Lab:

  1. InkSpace and Laser Cutting

InkScape is a digital program that is used in the Fab Lab in order to use the Laser cutter. If you have any experience with any of the Adobe Suite programs, it is very easy to learn. But even without any experience, you can learn how to use it within 20 minutes. The most important part is make sure the lines that will be laser cut should have a stroke of 0.01 mm and colored in red, RGBA: 255,0,0,255. If you would like to have vectors, just change the color to blue, RGBA: 0,0,255,255. Then save the file to a SVG format and print your file on the laser cutter. For my project, I used the laser cutter to cut the Acrylic according to our design. The laser cutter saves a lot of time and cuts the pieces precisely, so there is no wobbly cut strokes. Also, the laser cutter is great for anyone who is using brittle materials such as acrylic and glass. I think our team saved a lot of time during the Make-A-Thon by using the laser cutter.

2. Sowing Machine

Yishou using the sowing machine.

The sowing machine is great when it comes to sowing fabric pieces together. I used to learn how to sow my pants in fourth grade using my hands. But after learning how to use the sowing machine, I now only use the sowing machine to sow any embroidery pieces. When you use the sowing machine, you need to first feed the thread through the holes according to the numbers and make sure you have the feeding thread underneath as well. Pulling back both threads, you can then start using the sowing machine. With enough practice, the final product will turn out to have clean seam or even seamless if you flip it inside out. For our C-Leg protection, we flipped the seamed side inside, so the product looked very clean without any seam to be shown. You can use the fabric as a pocket. For an example, our group inserted foam pieces inside the two fabric and made it accessible with velcro.

3. Acrylic Bender and Heat Gun

Lastly, the heat gun is my favorite equipment to use in the Fab Lab. It is also one of the most dangerous equipment to use, due to how hot it could get. With maximum heat, it could burn your skin very badly, so it should be always be used with heat resistant gloves. Another similar product is the acrylic bender. This product only applies heat in a straight line, so it takes longer to bend objects. I found out that this equipment is best when it’s used to precisely bend an object in a certain angle. For our project, we first used the acrylic bender to get a general shape of the mold. Then we used the heat gun to warp the shape according to the 3D scanned C-Leg. When we were using the heat gun, we had to make sure we protected the 3D scanned C-Leg with fabric, so the 3D canned C-Leg won’t melt. With enough caution, the acrylic bender and the heat gun is a great tool to use.

Conclusion:

Throughout this semester, I’ve discovered all these gems located in our campus. And it was an awesome opportunity to learned how to use all of these equipments. I don’t think I would’ve been exposed to any of these if it wasn’t for BADM 357 class and the Make-A-Thon. This course has definitely made me hungry to explore other equipments located around the campus and I am going to give it a try. I will continue to use these techniques I’ve learned and use it create other prototypes as well. I also hope that this guide will attract other non-designers to take a chance and explore the beauty of designing prototypes.

My journey at BADM 357 Digital Making course

Throughout this semester, my journey at the Digital Making course was such a life changing experience. It opened my eyes to various tools located in both the Makers Lab and the Fab Lab. And with the help of “Milestone Lab”, our team was able to experience making a functioning prototype at the Make-A-Thon. This course has taught me that the result is not the most important aspect instead, we need to embrace our failures and talk with our users to create something that our users will love to use.

Tools I’ve learned throughout the Semester:

  1. 3D printing and Scanning

As an industrial design major, I came into this course with the knowledge of how to use “Solidworks”, so I thought this area was nothing new. I was wrong. Our instructor, Dr. Vishal, coordinated with several experts to teach us how to use 3D modeling programs such as “Cura” and “Fusion 360”. It was also really helpful. Our class was located in the Makers Lab, so we had direct access to these 3D printers. There was also the 3D scanner that was powered by a ipad. While holding the ipad, you can rotate the object and watch the ipad recognize the object into an “obj” file. Then sending this file and convert it to a “stl” file will grant us access to the 3D printers.

For our final project, our team used “Solidworks” to create the model and based it off of a 3D scanned Jenna’s prosthetic leg model, C-Leg, that we’ve previously scanned. The C-Leg was too long, so we had to cut it into three pieces and took us total of 10 hours, but it was the most worthy 10 hours in my life. The 3D model made our project look more refined.

2. InkScape and Laser cutting

We learned how to use “InkScape” on our first week at the Fab Lab. “InkScape” is a very simple tool to use if you have experience of any drawing tools like I do. But even without digital art experience, it’s a much simpler version of “photoshop”. The most beneficial aspect of this tool was it can be transferred over to the laser cutter. The laser cutter is using a laser that is transferred through optic lens and is shotted out through a nozzle that can cut through glass, acrylic, wood, etc in a very precise matter.

Our group used these tools during the Make-A-Thon. We first had to draw a few patterns we wanted our leg protection to have. Then we transferred the sketch into “InkScape”. Then we sent that “InkScape” file to the laser cutter and then laser cut the acrylic board. It was really cool to use all these tools and it really opened my eyes to the numerous possibility of design methods.

3. Arduino and Heat Gun

On our second week in the Fab Lab, we learned how to use the Arduino Uno. We were guided through a tutorial by the staff members in the Fab Lab. And then we were able to make the Arduino Uno turn on and off it’s LED light by uploading a blink and fade mode into the system. Our group did not use this program during the Make-A-Thon, but we are planning on using this blink and fade mechanism to brighten up the leg guard in the future.

We used the Heat Gun during the Make-A-Thon. I have never used a Heat Gun before and neither our group members did. So we were very intimidated by the amount of heat this device can heat up. However after a few practice rounds, we were able to get a clean curve based on our mold. We had our 3D scanned model of the C-Leg covered with fabric to prevent the 3D scanned model from melting. After learning the basics, we were able to create a nice acrylic protection for our model.

Overall

I was first introduced to this class from Dr. McDonagh’s disability class. This is where I met Dr. Vishal and I was inspired by his speech about this Maker’s Lab class.

This class kept me on my toes the entire time. We had a lot of submissions and deadlines to keep up, but it actually made us think constantly about our project. It came to the point where we fell in love with our project and always thought about it whenever we went. For me, I always carry around my sketchbook since you never know when a great idea might pop up. Sometimes I would sketch while I’m eating my lunch in the Link Gallery.

Throughout this course, I learned the importance of the users and learning about each steps of prototyping a project. We were assigned a mentor and we were constantly talking with them and searching for opportunities to make a better product for them. I loved how we bonded together and it drove us to wanting to help them more and more.

I am very sad that is course is over. If I had the chance, I would definitely take this course one more time. And if anyone is willing to take this course, I would highly recommend them to take this course.

There is so many techniques I’ve learned throughout this course and it opened my eyes towards how to become a great designer that cares for the users. I plan to use these techniques and pursue my dreams on becoming an empathetic designer that will seek for opportunities in other user’s needs.

Week 13: Moving forward after the Make-A-Thon

Last weekend, we had our first Make-A-Thon and it was a blast. I knew about a Make-A-Thon other than it’s similar to a Hack-A-Thon. I really want to first thank all the staff, professors and sponsors who made this event possible. Without their help, I don’t think I would’ve had this awesome experience.

Before we went into the Make-A-Thon, all we had was a list of materials under a 150 dollars from Vishal and the fab lab. And we had to make our functional model of a prosthetic leg protection within two days over the weekend. For me, I was afraid we were not going to have enough time to finish our project. So, we made sure we scanned Jenna’s C-Leg model from the Makers Lab and went to the Fab Lab ahead of time, to print the C-Leg on the 3D printer. And with this, we saved 12 hours of printing a C-Leg during the Make-A-Thon.

I feel like the Make-A-Thon brought all of our group members close to each other. For example, Ryan gave me a ride to the Fab Lab and our new member, Yishou, helped us with the functionality. He is a PHD student in Engineering, but he is an expert when it comes to the tools in the Fab Lab. With his help, I was introduced to the Heat gun, the sowing machine, the Acrylic heater, the Laser cutter, etc. And he with his excellent skill with the sowing machine, our project looked very refined. Ryan helped us with the overall color scheme and knitting the velcro together with the strap. My job was to come up with the design for the prosthetic leg cover and create the prosthetic leg cover. At first, I didn’t know what to do, until Colten, a Fab Lab staff, gave me this awesome idea to bend the acrylic using the Heat gun and Acrylic heater. I was afraid at first, because both tools can get really hot and possibly burn the skin. But with enough practice and guidance from Fab Lab staffs, James and Duncan, I was able to make the shape. Also, since the C-Leg is ergonomic, heating the laser cut acrylic over the 3D-Printed C-Leg was a great idea. Overall, without our group members and the Fab Lab staff, I don’t think we could’ve achieve such a gorgeous final model.

We did our check up time to time during the Make-A-Thon. This gave us the good scheme of where everyone is at and got some great feedback from each other. Also, Michal Kabatznik from Milestone Lab was there to give us feedback. As an expert, she gave some great insight on how we should pursue our project and what steps we should take next. I really enjoy this check up and it made me feel we were part of a large team instead of competing between each other.

As conclusion, I think the Make-A-Thon made me grow as a person. I was able learn how to use these tools in the Fab Lab through trial and error. And whenever there was a problem, our team tackled it as a group not individuals. And with the preparations before the Make-A-Thon and Fab Lab staff members, our project came out way better than I ever imagined to be. From this point on, our team will try to talk with Jenna and Jeannette and see how we can improve our Prosthetic protection model.

Week 10 Preparations for Makeathon

This week, we had our first pre-Makeathon class. There was Dr. McDonagh’s art and design students and Maker lab’s students who were also participating in this event. We discussed about when and how this event was going to happen. I’ve heard about Hackathons in our school. However, I never heard about this event called the Makeathon and I am very honored to have the chance to participate in one.

Other people from the DRES came over to help us brainstorm our ideas. Since our team MOVI had a set idea, we tried to expand on how we might improve our ideas. We talked to one of the wheel chair users named Isaiah. He was very cool talking about his experience as a wheel chair user and having hand tremors at the same time. I told him that we were trying to make a knee protection for everyone even for people with hand tremors. When he saw our previous prototypes, he asked if we could make the connection part out of zippers. For people with weak hand strength, it is very hard to utilize items that require grip. Especially garments using Velcro or button-ups are the worst, so they try to stay away from those products. I think this strengthen our prototype and it expanded our user group as well.

John was another wheel chair user with hand tremor who came over to the conference to help us out. He gave us a very compelling story of his special sock, customized by his mother. The sock had two holes on each sides, so John can insert his finger through the hole and them pull his foot. This also gave us the idea of making the zipper hole very big so, people with hand tremors can easily use this circle attachment to put the knee protection on.

Further on, our team will talk with Jenna and Jeannette this week, and study how they fall. We have already came up with some great questions through our “testing protocol” exercise. By watching Jenna and Jeannette fall, we can deduct which part of the protection needs more pad. I think we were very successful during this week and I am looking forward to our talk with our users.

Week 9 Final week in Fab Lab

Last week in the Fab Lab, each group finished either designing the top part of the watch or learning how to light up a LED using wires on a breadboard. This week is the last week of our trip to the Fab Lab.

This week was my first experience of using a code. I watched a lot of people using codes from my previous summer internship when I was working with a lot of computer science majors. I always thought it was too difficult for me to learn but with the help of the Fab Lab, it was much easier to learn than it looked. We used this program called Arduino to download codes and input numbers to teach the circuit board. I think it was cool to watch this small circuit board memorize multiple tasks and present them without a single fail. We taught the board how to turn on and off the LED lights with a second interval. Then we taught it how to give out different numbers when it’s turning 90 degrees and not. This way, the users who are using the watch can see when the watch is twisting or turning.


After we made the circuit board, we combined it with our other watch components. It looked really good and it was very satisfying and sad to watch the three week short project come to an end. I feel like we could also integrate this circuit board into our current project of the knee protection. Maybe we can attach a sensor, like when a car is backing up to park, that will make noises to alert when it’s making contact with an object. This will probably go behind part of the prosthetic leg where it is least dangerous. I think through this experience, I have become more open minded with the usage of technology in products. And I think circuit board is a great method to do simple tasks. As a designer, I think I can use this circuit board in many different ideations such as creating a jacket that will light up in the dark to alert drivers.

We also learned about how to create storyboards. I think this helped our group the most out. We were finally able to collectively layout the intended usage of our product and how we are going to achieve it. I think this will definitely guide us through out project as we can use this as our root when we are further diving into our research and prototyping. In the future, I think I will use this before I start my projects. Because then, I can always refer back to my guidelines without hindering away.

I think for the next step, our group is going to create more prototypes and talk to the Material Science professor for better insights in elastic material that will wrap around Jenna’s prosthetic leg. Also, we need to make more higher quality prototypes with actual cloth material and make hooks that will latch on to the back of the prosthetic leg.

BADM 357 once a semester summary (week 8)

Overall

I’ve learned so much throughout the eight weeks in class in BADM 357 Maker’s Lab class taught by Dr. Vishal. We got paired up into group of four and each group consist of people with different majors. Soon, I’ve discovered that this is great way to pair up groups. Since, we can share our different point of view, it helps us learn from each other and think broader. Then we were assigned a mentor per group. We were blessed with Jenna, a Paralympic athlete, who uses a prosthetic leg. Through the class, we learned about new skills, empathic modeling and prototyping. And with the new skills acquired, we tried to find opportunities that will make our mentor’s, Jenna, life easier.

Fab Lab

Fab Lab is a place located near the South Quad of University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, where anyone can come over and enjoy the numerous tools provided by the lab. It’s a very great place to use these expensive tools for a low cost as you can create even shoulder protectors out of mold and plastic. For the past two weeks, we were working with the Fab Lab on a watch that could alert when the user twists or turns his/her wrist.

Activity

1. Laser Cutter

A laser cutter is a device that produces a laser from a laser resonator that will be shot through a nozzle to cut a specific pattern. Our group were split up into two groups and one of the groups worked on the laser cutters. First, we used this platform called, “Inkscape” to create a cover for our watch. And then we converted this object, the design we drew, into a “path”. This will automatically generate a “G Code” and we uploaded this “G Code” to the laser cutter machine. A lot of students tried to design their twist and turn watch cover using words. Some students discovered, text can be replaced with two simple notches indicating the direction the watch can twist and turn. (https://digitalmaking.web.illinois.edu/spring2019/round-2-at-the-fablab/)

2. Circuit Board

A circuit board is a board that portrays the physical components of an electronic device. Students were to use a breadboard as their circuit board and connect different wires to light up a LED. First, each plus and minus side of a battery and two linear holes of the breadboard were connected using two wires. Then linear to one of the plus hole, insert the long end of the LED light. After that, use a resistor, to save overflowing of electricity, to connect the other end of the LED light to the hole linear to the short end of the LED light. Some students, who were more familiar with the math side of the circuit board, learned more about the science side of the circuit board through this activity. (https://digitalmaking.web.illinois.edu/spring2019/moving-forward-%EF%BB%BF/) This activity made students consider implementing some electrical function into their product as well.

Milestone Lab

Milestone Lab is a consulting firm specializing in cross-sector collaborations. They believe that a real social impact and changes comes when a person living with a challenge works with those who are trying to solve it. They were interested how we were working with people at DRES, where we met Jenna, to find opportunities to make people in DRES daily lives easier. This week, each group had a chance to talk with the Milestone Lab. Each group brought their own prototypes they’ve created in the previous week along with their research. Throughout the presentation, Milestone Lab gave critical feedback for each group. One group were suggested to ask their mentors about specific grip placement. (https://digitalmaking.web.illinois.edu/spring2019/moving-forward-%EF%BB%BF/). Another group were suggested to look into different materials to protect the joystick of the power wheel chair. (https://digitalmaking.web.illinois.edu/spring2019/lighting-up-the-bulb/) Our group was suggested to interview elderly prosthetic leg users. (https://digitalmaking.web.illinois.edu/spring2019/week-8-another-day-in-fablab-and-talking-with-milestone-studio/) As a result, many group members were very pleased on how Milestone Labs helped them took their project from an expert point of view. Many groups discovered they were lacking market research and material research from their talk with Milestone. For the next stage, a lot of groups are now looking into different materials and creating improved version of their prototypes.

https://www.milestone-labs.com/

Prototype

Prototyping is an activity where designers make a quick model of their ideation within under 30 minutes. It’s suppose to be a quick overview of what the model could look like after production. For our model, we made it in paper and foam so we can interact with them. We brought it to class and asked our mentor, Jenna, to try them out. And based on Jenna’s response, we discovered that she does not want any protection above the knee. This is because it hinders her performance during her practice. Similarly, other groups based their prototypes based on their mentor’s suggestions. This way, we knew the users are going to be satisfied when our products are placed in the market.

Conclusion

From week eight, our class learned how to use various of tools and receive great feedback from Milestone Labs. Now, students have the knowledge of using the laser cutter and circuit board to further improve their prototypes. Along with creating prototypes, the groups are ready to ask experts in Material Science departments, based on their talk with Milestone Lab, to consolidate their choice of material. And with the new prototypes, we will go back to our mentors to consolidate our design. Everyone discovered what they needed to improve for their next step. A lot of us are very satisfied with the progress we’ve made this week.

Week 8 Another day in fablab and talking with Milestone studio

This week, I learned how to light up a bulb using wires and a flat battery on the circuit board. First, we tested if the flat battery had enough voltage using a Multimeter. Then, we connected both positive and negative sides of the flat battery to the circuit board using the wires. And depending on the placement, we added different stoppers to limit the amount of voltage going through the circuit. This will help us light our protection in light for prosthetic users to use them in the night when they are going on a walk. Next week, we are going to finish making the watch using the watch cover we previously made using the laser cutter.

Last week, we created three different prototypes based on our research. And in this, Milestone studio was generous to spend their time with us and gave us feedback based on our new research and prototypes. Overall, we got some great feedback. Our group had some great first hand resources, Jenna and Jeannette, and have some good prototypes. Now, we need to interview elder prosthetic leg users and veterans prosthetic leg users. Then we can target a larger age group than just, young athletic prosthetic leg users. Milestone also suggested us to study Jenna’s prosthetic model and create a protection specifically for her. So further on, our group is going meet up with Jenna and take pictures of her walking and running with her prosthetic leg. This way, we can design a model that will not interfere with her movement.

Jenna gave us great feedback this week. She told us to not make the protection come up to their thighs. That actually hinders her from running. Also, she wants her protection to not be a sleeve because it tends to spin around her slippery prosthetic leg. So, we need to hold down the protection on the prosthetic leg without going over the thigh. As a solution, our group create a hook that will go on the back part of Jenna’s prosthetic leg. This will firmly hold the protection to the leg without having it fall off. The hooks should be covered with rubber but have a metal sheet for firmness. The sleeve is going to be made out of silicon or part PVC plastic and silicon. For next week, we are going to work on deciding the best material for making our prosthetic model. So, we are going to a prosthetic arm firm called Psyonic and ask for material suggestion. This way we can finalize on our material cost and find a way how to make a cheap prosthetic protection just like Psyonic.

Week 7 Prototyping and visiting the Fablab

This week, we had a great opportunity to visit the Fablab for the first time. I’ve always heard about this Fablab, but never really had a chance to visit. Our class was split into two sessions. I was in a group where we learned how to use a program that creates a template. With this template, we can use it to laser cut it and create accurate measured three dimensional objects. There was an example of a laser cut project that was made out of plastic and it was shaped like a knee protector. This was one of the inspiration of our group and we made a lot of progress through the brainstorming session, our class provided. As a result we found three very effective designs. For effectiveness, we wanted to make a knee pad that will attach onto the knee like a slap on bracelet. This will be a very quick process and athletic people like Jenna can save time changing gears. For feasibility, we wanted to make a knee pad that will cover only the knee and attach to the knee using a strap mechanism. This is already an existing product, so it’s a very good base to start our project. For implement, we used the existing design for feasibility and add protection that will cover the side of the calf to the ankle. This area of protection is what Jenna felt like needed protection and that is why it’s an implement on top of the existing product. We came up with some great ideation from this activity and for the next step we are looking into different materials we can use in the Fablab.

This week, our group met at the art and design building to create some prototypes and progress for the upcoming week with Milestone Lab. Based on our previous ideation brainstorming from the Fablab, we created three new prototypes. As a art student, I’ve introduced my teammates, Ryan and Nathan, to the beauty of hot glue gun and the cutting board. Each of us took role in creating these prototype and had a say in each of our prototypes. The first prototype was a sleeve with a small block of knee pad, so people like Jeannette can put the knee pad on for weeks. The second prototype was a strap on that will get thinner at the popliteal part of the leg. This is made for people like Jeannette who cannot bend their prosthetic leg all the way through. The third prototype has a similar strap mechanism to the second prototype, but has a knee pad that can bend. This way, it looks more like a knee and not like a machine just like how Jeannette wanted to look like when she had her first prosthetic leg. I think we have made great progress and we are ready to meet up with Jenna once more to try out these prototypes and get feedbacks so we can improve our models even further. As conclusion, we wanted to create the knee pad out of firm and flexible material, but the strap or sleeve will be fabric materials.

Week 6 Diving into Fusion 360

This week, we had an awesome opportunity to get Dan Banach from Auto Desk to teach us about the basics of Fusion 360. Before we met Dan, we got a taste of Fusion 360 by going through an activity so most of us were very new to this platform. It was the same for me as well. I never touched Fusion 360 before and I was going in blind folded. However as Dan was going through the exercise he’s provided for us, I realized it was very similar to “SolidWorks”, another 3d modeling platform. So, the whole process was like a review for me. It was a lot of information for us to cover but with Dan explaining each step clearly, I think I was able to remember a lot of the tools. I feel like after the class, I was in a good position to start mocking up some prototypes for our project.

This Friday, we met up with our mentor, Jenna and scanned her prosthetic leg. We were very grateful that she was able to allow time in her busy schedule to work with us. Using the scanner for the first time was a great experience. I missed a few spots, so I got assistance from the lab assistant and got a great scanned version of her prosthetic leg. With this model, we can create the sleeve that will go on top of the prosthetic leg and create the hole for the battery charger. This is a great reference for us to look back whenever we are stuck.

Another thing I’ve realized is that, the prosthetic leg and the knee pad has a very organic surface area which we have not yet learn from Dan’s class. So, I asked Dan how to model organic shapes in Fusion 360. He told me I should use this tool called, “T-Spline Geometries”. This function can modify a mold like a Play Doh. This is a tool that isn’t in SolidWorks which makes it easier for us to create these quick prototypes of organic shapes.

Overall, I think the next step for us is to meet more people with similar experiences and expertise to get a better understanding of our direction. And this week, we are going to scan our knee to get the optimal shape of the knee pad. We are going to meet again and further discuss about this matter and in the mean while, we will try to find other expertise and interview them for further inspirations. I felt like we have learn so much through this week and I am looking forward to using Fusion 360.

Week 5 Reflection

This week is the phase where we collected our research and turn them into ideations. As a group we collaborated together and answered a few questions of how to transition from research into ideation. First we wrote down the words related to the questions and then tried to categorize them into groups. I feel like this step is very important, because this way we can always come back whenever we are stuck during ideation, we look back what we prioritize the most. Also, this step has given us a great head start on what we are looking in our “knee pad”. It’s like a check box that we can tick off along the way of our ideation.

We had to watch the video about Professor Weightman talk about how what is a good design. First, he talked about the three key points. He said, a good design consists desirability, viability and feasibility. He said, the environment, business and responsibility of the product should co-exist for a product to be in the market. In order to succeed, first we need to identify what the people want. So, we ask people what they do and what they need. Then after collecting data, designers will creating empathic models based on their research. This model is where designers will conduct experiments where they try to understand the user’s emotions and feeling using a product in a certain environment. And then with all the data collection, the designers will dilute them and decide which are the most useful one. As a person who learns best from experience, I like how we, as the designers, are conducting experiments based on our users. This way, we can critically pin point down how our knee pad should be designed as.

Study sketches of Jenna’s prosthetic leg and knee pad design.

This week, we had the honor to meet author, John Hornick as a guest speaker. He told us about 3d printing for health innovation and products for people with special needs. He featured various 3d printed products that seem to be impossible about a decade ago. And now, these children in Miami are getting heart treatment by the doctors studying a 3d printed model of the child’s heart. This may sound unethical to some people. But John told us that we are improving the products as we move one. His speech inspired me to persuade along with my research. I feel like I have been limiting myself when I was ideating ideas. I felt like the technology wasn’t there to support my ideas. However, like John told us, I need to go outside my comfort zone. I will need to put my foot in our mentor, Jenna’s shoe, by scanning her knee. In the future, I will try to scan her knee and create a quick mock up of a knee pad and try all on them. As our group, we will try falling on different terrains to find which parts of the knee needs the most cushion to minimize the impact. And we will test them using various of materials as well.