So we are now about a week into our project. We went to the recreation center pool on Monday to test the previous design. We discovered the failures of the previous design and how we can improve it. Afterwards we started the engineering design process: research, brainstorm ideas,  screening and scoring matrices, and a final design (see image below).

Basically this design won over seven others because it was easy for the family to use, comfortable, safe, prevented rotation, and most of all prevented the client’s tracheal tube from entering the water.

To proceed with prototyping we had to do more materials research and order what we wanted. So far we are currently waiting on materials, so this project is in a bit of limbo at the moment.

While we were waiting, we created a model of our client. Basically one of the failures of the previous device was that it worked of everyone but the user. This is because the previous team underestimated the amount of effort needed to remain in an upright position in the water. Our goal was to simulate his movements so we could test without putting the client in danger.

Thus we now have a new team member, Mortimer. He is an inflatable doll that people use to dress up front porches on Halloween. Basically we tied knots in his joints to simulate movement, and filled joints with water to allow limbs to weigh down. When we tested him in the water he passed the first round of testing. 

After creating a fourth team member, we started a side project that we can work on while waiting for our materials to come in. The project is called the neonatal temperature monitor and we are creating a new user interface for the project. Right now we are in the clarifying team assignment and research stage, but since our materials may not be in by Monday, we may move on to the brainstorming stage.