Lounge Table
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Contents
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Table of contents 06 08 18 24 40 58
Overview Device Secondary Primary Ideation Summary
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Rebranding
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Introduction
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Intro An oxygen concentrator is a device, which distills oxygen from a gas supply (typically ambient air); in order to supply oxygen enriched gas mixture. O is an oxygen concentrator, which provides higher concentrated oxygen to patients, who are diagnosed with diseases like COPD. There are three main components for the current oxygen concentrator: main device, Oxygen Cannula, and the carrier for the device. Several main problems were discovered with the current oxygen concentrator.
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Lounge Table
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Overview
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Overview For O, traditional research process has been taken place in order to solve the problems from the existing product. Several steps has taken place like secondary and primary research. Research started with broad spectrum of secondary research and narrow it down to the ideation and refinement. Observational research was also great source for me to observe and see some of the problems that users encounter during their use.
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Secondary Device
Primary Interviews Observation
Ideation Develop
Summary
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Device
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Device As a secondary research, I started off with researching the actual device itself to see how it works. There were several different kinds of oxygen concentrators and systems. In this section. all the research related to the oxygen concentrator device itself will be introduce from step by step procedure to the competitors
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Re branding
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Device
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How it works? 1. Air enters 2. Air goes into the compressing channel 3. Compressing channel take 21% of oxygen from the air and filters it 4. Sieve beds separates nitrogen particles from oxygen particles (nitrogen particles are a bit bigger than oxygen particles) 5. Sends out the nitrogen particles 6. Continuously compresses the oxygen particles 7. Then release the oxygen when it becomes over 90% of oxygen
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Medical
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Device
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Systems
Oxygen concentrators
Liquid oxygen
Oxygen cylinders
+ no need for refilling
+ light
+ various size
+ safer(without tank)
+ easy to carry around
+ easy to refill
- bulky
- safety problem
- hard to control pressure
- not easy to move around
- require refill
- bulky and heavy
- complicated procedure for set up
- expensive maintenance cost
- not meant to be carry around
- heavy
- need separate cart
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Medical
Components
Body
Oxygen concentrator filter
Seive beds
battery(for portable)
Cannula
Humidifier
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Device
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Competitors
Focus Airsep
Inogen One G3
LifeChoice Activox
+ light weight 1.75 pounds
+ Long battery life: 9 hours
+ Long battery life: 12 hours
+ hip,belt, shoulder strap
+ Automatic breathing level sensor
+ External battery available + 4 ways carrying case
- Lower oxygen concentration :
- Only pulse setting
90%(usually 95% or up)
- Only comes out with shoulder
- Lower oxygen concentration: 90%
- Warm up time
bag option
- Only pulse setting
- Only pulse setting
- Noisy
- Short battery life: 3 hours
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Medical
Respironics SimplyGo
Respironics EverGo
LifeChoice Panky
+ Pulse + continuous flow
+ Pulse + continuous flow
+ Product a high concentration of
+ A lot of option for accessories
+ Automatic breathing level sensor
oxygen : 94%
+ Operate with AC/DC power supply
- Heavy: 10 pounds
+ Pulse + continuous - Expensive - Not many option for accessories
- Short battery life: 5 hours
to carry around
- Very Heavy : 19 Pounds
- Bulky and not easy to travel around - Expensive: $4300
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Device
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1. High mobility + High oxygen concentration High mobility will allow user to move around with the oxygen concentrator. However, there were some issues with the battery life in the past. As the technology on battery develops more small sized oxygen concentrator with high level oxygen concentration will be a opportunity.
2. Medium mobility + High oxygen concentration Due to the high cost of small sized battery, medium sized oxygen concentrator can be a opportunity which will lower the cost however, allow user to carry around their device more easily.
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Medical
High mobility
1 Low oxygen concentration
High oxygen concentration
2 Low mobility
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Observation
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Observation Observational research took place in order to find out how the user are reacting to the current oxygen concentrator. There were several problems that has been detected during this process to be resolved. The observation research in this section has been taken place as a secondary research method.
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Observation
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Observing problems
Not clear indication for the circuit break button
False usage of some of the icons and lights
Circuit break button should only be used in the emergency situation or unusual events. However, circuit break button just look like normal operating button which has no clear difference
Icons that indicates power and option for operation has very limited information for senior users to understand easily. Some of the icons do not make sense like telephone button for the service icon
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Medical
Indicate direction for rotation is not intuitive for seniors
Thin rubber band to hold the heavy loaded humidifier
Indication for direction of rotation to change the level of oxygen is not clear enough for seniors to adjust. Moreover, the rotation button is really small for seniors to grab to rotate
Some patients need to connect humidifier for their treatment. However, heavy water loaded humidifier is only holded by single thin rubber band to the machine.
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Observation
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Observing problems
Tightening the oxygen hose to the humidifier
Black marking for level of oxygen
Tightening the oxygen hose to the humidifier can be hard job for some of the senior users. Great number of senior users do not have grasping power to tighten the oxygen hose to the humidifier
Black marking for the oxygen level is not clear and visible enough for the senior users. The marking for the level of oxygen is not accurate enough with the black line marking
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Medical
Hose sometimes cannot hold on ears because of tension
Hose stuck on the forehead when taking off the cannula
Tension of the hose sometimes won’t allow user to hold on their ear and slips down. No gripping what so ever for the contacting surface of the hose and the ear.
When user is taking off the cannula they sometimes take off upwards and it stuck on their forehead. They need to take it off step by step from their neck in order to avoid this.
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Interviews
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Interviews Several interviews took place in order to observe more deeply with the user’s acutal products. Moreover, expert interview allowed me to realize different kinds of problems in different sections on the oxygen concentrator. Some of them metioned that they don’t have any problem with the device, but I could see some of the problems when they were using the actual device.
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Interviews
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Expert interview
Dianne Hauschka Health Care training Center Operator Has been in Industry for 20 years “ Oxygen concentrator is not the best machine to operate for seniors. �
Black marking for level of oxygen
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Medical
Observing problems
Not clear marking for oxygen indication
No gripping to prevent Cannula slipping down
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Interviews
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Observing problems
Tangled cannula tube(hose)
Folding tubes that blocks the air flow
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Medical
Use of water cup for oxyen flow checking
No clear indication for min and max level
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Interviews
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User observation
Desperate battery
Rick Liu Caltech Computer Engineering Student Has been using Oxygen concentrator for 2 years “ It is really irritating that people are constantly looking at me because of my cannula �
need to connect to separate
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Medical
Observing problems
make an effort to untie the tangled cannula
dangling humidifier outside of bag
push cannula hard to connect with device
need to take off glasses to wear the cannula
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Interviews
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Observing problems
Cannula folds as Rick puts device into the bag
Need a wire arrangement before putting into the bag
Small plastic part holds the cannula to the neck
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Medical
Problems related to dashboard interaction
Buttons
Screens
• Icons are small and not clear • Buttons are too close from each other • Lack of Hierarchy
• Lack of visibility • Too much information • Complicated navigation system
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Interviews
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User observation
Too many components to assemble
Nick Verrier Senior using oxygen concentrator Has been using Oxygen concentrator for 5 years “ Not much problem using the concentrator, maybe because I’ve been using it so long and I am used to the device ”
Disassemble every day for cleaning
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Medical
Observing problems
Hard to place inside the car
Hygiene problem with checking the air flow by touching the cannula
Some of the inserting part for wires and cannula are not perfect placement
Need decent amount of pressure power to insert cannula into the device
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Interviews
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Expert interview
Weak Velcro tightening for the humidifier
Will Holmes Pico medical shop owner Has been running the shop for 15 years
“ I think oxygen concentrator can be smarter like smartphones! �
Hose is placed inside the lid
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Medical
Observing problems
Need to push really hard to take off the lid for the connector
Too small grip to tighten the hose to the humidifier
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Interviews
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Observation summary Inserting hose/wires
Level/oxygen indications
Cannula
• Need to push really hard to take off the lid for the connector
• No clear indication for min and max level
• Need to take off glasses to wear the cannula
• Push cannula hard to connect with device
• Black marking for level of oxygen
• Cannula folds as Rick puts device into the bag
Maintenance • Too many components to assemble
• Use of water cup for oxygen flow checking Dashboard interaction
• Disassemble every day for cleaning
• Icons are small and not clear
Arrangement
• Lack of Hierarchy
• Some of the inserting part for wires and cannula are not perfect placement
• Lack of visibility
• Need a wire arrangement before putting into the bag
• Complicated navigation system
Humidifier Holder
• Indicate direction for rotation is not intuitive for seniors
• Thin rubber band to hold the heavy loaded humidifier • Too small grip to tighten the hose to the humidifier
• Buttons are too close from each other
• Too much information
• False usage of some of the icons and lights
• Hose stuck on the forehead when taking off the cannula • Hose sometimes cannot hold on ears because of tension • Confusing direction for inserting cannula • No gripping to prevent Cannula slipping down • Hygiene problem with checking the air flow by touching the cannula Make an effort to untie the tangled cannula • Tangled cannula tube(hose) • Folding tubes that blocks the air flow
• Not clear indication for the circuit break button
• Weak Velcro tightening for the humidifier
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Medical
Design criteria
Inserting hose
Arrangement
Oxygen indications
User
Easier connection with less power consuming
Better port management and placement
More clear oxygen indication levels
People’s perception towards medical product (Product that does not look like medical dev) Smart Device sync for emergency situation
Dashboard interaction
Maintenance
Cannula
Simpler and Intuitive dashboard with clear hierarchy and visibility
Simpler way to disassemble for maintenance cleaning
Better cannula tube(hose) management to prevent folding tubes Simpler and easier way to take off Cannula
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Ideation
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Ideation Ideation took place with the design criteria that has been created based on the research. Each criteria includes different aspects of problems related to the current oxygen concentrator. Ideas then observed and carefully developed with mock ups. I started with the broad ideas then narrow them down into several ideas to develop the design.
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Ideation
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Inserting hose
Easier connection with less power consuming
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Different positioning
Different positioning of the valve that connects the device and the hose
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Ideation
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Inserting hose
Mechanical, material and shape play to see different kinds of ways to insert the hose
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Mechanism
Outsourced mechanism that can be used with the oxygen cannula
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Ideation
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Cannula tube
Better cannula tube(hose) management to prevent folding tubes Simpler and easier way to take off Cannula
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Holding the tube
Small plastic part holds the cannula to the neck. No gripping to prevent Cannula slipping down
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Ideation
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User
People’s perception towards medical product (Product that does not look like medical dev) Smart Device sync for emergency situation
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Medical
Eliminating perception
People’s perception towards medical product (Product that does not look like medical dev) Smart Device sync for emergency situation
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Ideation
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User
People’s perception towards medical product (Product that does not look like medical dev) Smart Device sync for emergency situation
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Dashboard interaction 1
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Simpler and Intuitive dashboard with clear hierarchy and visibility
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Ideation
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Smart device with app
Smart Device sync for emergency situation
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Connecting user
Smart Device sync for emergency situation
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Ideation
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Ideation
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Summary
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Summary Each ideas from the ideation process has been carefully considered to be developed into the final prototype stage. By dissecting the device into different components, I could see various problems related to each components. Each criteria has been summarized with research and the final ideas from ideation process.
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Rebranding
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Summary
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Innovative cannula sealing
New and specific cannula sealing tube was designed for O, which can be casually replaced and inserted with ease. The connecting segments are made from a latex material, working as a rubber seal for the tube. The user can simply insert the hose onto the device and enclose the latex seal.
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Summary
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Clip type foampad on cannula
The main problem with the cannula tube is that it pressures the user’s ear. There were several users that were complain about this problem. For O, the extra memory foam pad for the back of the ear will be added to create extra softness to prevent pressure on the ears.
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Summary
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Clip type foampad on cannula
The main problem with the cannula tube is that it pressures the user’s ear. There were several users that were complain about this problem. For O, the extra memory foam pad for the back of the ear will be added to create extra softness to prevent pressure on the ears.
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Summary
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Intuitive controls
Many users currently struggle with operating the device, due to the poor application of complicated icons and buttons to the dashboard. O’s designs are simple, indicating the essentials the users need through intuitive and obvious large sized icons that guide users in controlling oxygen levels and the power.
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Summary
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Eliminate a distinct medical presence
Current oxygen concentrators in the market exude a distinct medical presence and aesthetic. Such an image has curated a sense of anxiety for many users, attracting unwanted attention and signifying their medical situation. As a result, many users tend to hide or disguise their oxygen concentrators. O’s design empathizes with the concerns of the target audience, designed and well crafted with a soft form language, which can be viewed as aesthetically pleasing. Its soft touch finish eliminates the look and feel of a medical device. 68
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Daniel Kim dkimdesigns@gmail.com dkimdesign.com 206.419.6432
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