Pushing the boundaries of how this procedure could be accomplished
Stryker Orthopaedics
Bone Marrow Aspirator
Stryker had developed a device for harvesting bone marrow from the pelvis for use in spinal surgery. While the prototypes were functional, the designs were unintuitive, difficult to operate, and rather conventional. Humanfactors studied surgical procedures using these functional prototypes and went to work developing a broad scope of alternative methods of performing this procedure—some unorthodox, others potentially impossible, but all effective in pushing the boundaries of how this procedure could be accomplished.
Design Problem
Stryker had developed a device for harvesting bone marrow from the pelvis for use in spinal surgery. While the prototypes were functional, the designs were unintuitive, difficult to operate, and rather conventional.
Design fundamentals like sound ergonomics and elegance are always at the fore, but exercises like this conceptual study permit a more unconventional, radical approach to design in ways that may fundamentally transform the instrument’s layout, and even its functionality. This was the first aspirator integrating the power of a peristaltic pump and a hand crank, features that provide greater control while increasing the volume and efficacy of bone marrow collection.
Surgical Observation.
Humanfactors studied surgical procedures using these functional prototypes and went to work developing a broad scope of alternative methods of performing this procedure—some unorthodox, others potentially impossible, but all effective in pushing the boundaries of how this procedure could be accomplished.
Concept Exploration.
Design fundamentals like sound ergonomics and elegance are always at the fore, but exercises like this conceptual study permit a more unconventional, radical approach to design in ways that may fundamentally transform the instrument’s layout, and even its functionality.
Concepts focused on simplifying component layout while exploring alternative interfaces, means of extracting and collecting fluid, and plunging the needle.
Rapid Prototyping.
With so many unusual designs under consideration, it became imperative to explore these ideas physically. Foam models enable the team to very efficiently validate ergonomics and component layouts, and the models are robust enough to enable surgeon feedback.