Team Reflection

Mobility Device Capstone

11/16/18

ME:4684

The team discussed all of the research to date to determine what problems were identified within each of the interviews. When compiling the research the team decided that there were similarities between a variety of problems therefore the user problems should be categorized. The team decided on four main categories: Use, Ease of Motion, Independence, and Stability; four other categories were created that involved combinations of the main categories, as the team determined to be appropriate. Through the different categories the team was able to see which overall category provided the biggest source of difficulty for the users, with this being the Use Category. The problems in the use category were mainly identified during the interview with the physical therapist.

Of the categories identified, the one that included the most surprising problems discovered by the group was problem category 8: Use, Ease of Motion, Stability, and Independence combined. Within this category the team learned that a lot of users have anxiety when using products. If the structure is weak, the user might be uncomfortable with adopting it into their regular schedule leading to lack of use or misuse. This issue was also noted when interviewing Ryan Wilber of a previous similar capstone group. Ryan identified that while their product was mechanically successful at the end, there was some uncertainty with the users and the product as it didn’t feel stable enough to the user’s preference; therefore, the issue of anxiety is one that the team has to prioritize throughout their design process. The other problem within category 8 was that the team has to design their product so it does not constrain the user in any way. The physical therapist noted that due to legal issues devices are not allowed to hinder the mobility of the user; therefore, within the final design the device must be easy for the user to stop using when desired by the user. This was an interesting problem to discover as the team didn’t think to consider any legal issues involved with mobility device design outside of patent or copyright issues.

This assignment helped the team organize the user problems into different categories which provided more clarity to where the group should focus its attention. The team is still unsure about which specific mobility device to focus on (walkers, canes, wheelchairs, crutches, etc.); however, the majority of the problems identified involve walkers and wheelchairs. Moving forward the team needs to work on deciding which of the root problems provide the best opportunity for a product.