Medical Device Cart Advisor: Professor Block Client: Viasys Healthcare Peg Rickard and Art Kealy Joe Cabelka: Team Leader Jennifer Wager: BSAC Emily Andrews: Communicator Tony: BWIG 10/25/06Table of Contents Abstract---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------3 Background Project Motivation-----------------------------------------------------------------------3 Current Device----------------------------------------------------------------------------3 Electroencephalography----------------------------------------------------------------6 Ergonomics--------------------------------------------------------------------------------8 Competition-------------------------------------------------------------------------------9 Design Constraints-------------------------------------------------------------------------------11 Materials-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------11 Alternate Designs Design I------------------------------------------------------------------------------------12 Design II-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------14 Design III----------------------------------------------------------------------------------16 Future Work---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------18 Ethics------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------19 References------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------20 Appendix A: PDS---------------------------------------------------------------------------------22 Appendix B: Cart Usage Survey---------------------------------------------------------------24Abstract Our goal is to develop a cart that houses all the components for monitoring an electroencephalogram (EEG). The cart should be designed with respect to ergonomic standards to facilitate easy workflow and ensure the comfort and safety of the users, while maintaining a compact footprint and low production costs. Each of our three preliminary design alternatives focuses on one of the following aspects: usability at various heights, optimizing usable work surface, and storage and cable management. Our final design will likely be a combination of all three of our preliminary design alternatives. We will choose our final design based on feedback from our clients and data collected from a survey we distributed to a sample user population. Once we have compiled our design concepts we will buy or build parts for a prototype of the design. Background Project Motivation The goal of this project is to create an ergonomically correct device cart to house an Electroencephalography (EEG) system produced by Viasys Healthcare. The current cart that accompanies the components of the EEG system is often not purchased by Viasys’ customers because it does not adequately meet their needs. The current cart has no options for adjustment to accommodate multiple users, no leg or foot space, minimal work surface, minimal storage, and no solution for cable management. Additional measures to ensure an ergonomically sound cart would be necessary to provide leverage for Viasys over their competitors. [15]Current Device Viasys Healthcare currently produces approximately 30 carts to store medical device equipment. They have had many complaints from their customers regarding the usability of all of their carts. They have approached us to come up with a new design for their mid-sized cart which houses EEG equipment. They anticipate transferring and applying many of our design concepts into a new line of carts. Figure I: Above is the current mid-sized cart from Viasys that would house EEG equipment. Figure II: A current Viasys cart in use at the UW hospital fully loaded. Note the lack of additional storage space.The main problems encountered with the current cart regard usability at multiple heights, lack of work surface, and minimal storage and cable management. The current cart has no adjustable components making it very uncomfortable people of various heights to use. The push bar on the back of the cart is mounted at one height which is not ideal for pushing. Also, the push bar is mounted too close to the back of the cart for the user to walk and push the cart comfortably with hitting their feet. Additionally there is virtually no work surface on the cart for filling out charts and other tasks that may need to be performed in addition to the EEG procedure. The monitor and keyboard occupy all of the desk space. Furthermore, there is no additional storage space for items, including cleaning supplies, the user may require aside from the components of the EEG system Finally, the cords from the EEG components are loose and not organized. The cables get in the way of task performance and are often run over when moving the cart. In general, the current cart from Viasys hinders work flow and is not adequate for its user population. [15] Figure III: Note the minimal storage space on a current fully loaded cart.Electroencephalography The electroencephalography or EEG procedure records brain waves used to detect electrical activity in the brain. Abnormalities in the brain can be detected by recording the electrical impulses that the brain uses to communicate. An EEG primarily records the impulses from the cerebellum which controls speech, thought, memory, and voluntary actions. This procedure is also often used to measure the electrical signals in the cerebral cortex, the thalamus, and the reticular activating system. The cerebral cortex is responsible for higher brain functions, the thalamus carries signals from the sensory organs to the brain, and the reticular activating system sends signals to the body to sleep and wake. Figure IV: A view of the loose cords from the EEG components on the current cart.The procedure involves a technician arranging electrodes, typically around 12, on the patients head. The electrodes are fixed into place with sticky paste. The patient must remain still during the procedure as movement can interfere with the signals. The electrodes transmit the electrical signal to an amplifier and the results are recorded in the system’s software. EEGs aid in diagnosing and managing several disorders. The EEG is a critical test in diagnosing and managing areas of
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