Nia Speculum

What it does

Nia Speculum revolutionizes pelvic exams with its gentle, modular petal-like design and built-in technology for visualizing the cervix. It empowers both patients and doctors, encouraging routine pelvic exams and cervical screenings in underserved communities.

Your inspiration

In India, there are 77,000 cervical cancer deaths annually, yet fewer than 2% of women receive routine screenings. Through personal experiences and conversations with patients, clinicians, and health workers, we learned that the discomfort and pain associated with speculum exams often discourage women from seeking care. We, as designers, took an initiative to rethink the tool by integrating nature-inspired forms, simpler mechanisms, and technology. Our goal is to create an empathetic, patient-centered device that makes preventive care comfortable, accessible, affordable, and sustainable in resource-limited settings.

How it works

Nia Speculum’s two‑part system couples a disposable, four‑petal blade unit with a reusable dilator housing electronics. Doctors choose one of three clear polypropylene petal sizes (8 cm, 11 cm, 14 cm) to match individual anatomy, with the provision of self-insertion, negating the need for scooting at the end of the bed. After insertion—optionally self‑guided via an ergonomic handle—the clinician slowly rotates the central screw, uniformly expanding each petal to the desired opening with control. Embedded within the screw is a miniature CMOS camera and LED array (≥480p, 1,500 lux), transmitting live video to a smartphone or tablet for real‑time visualization, assisted with ML for cancer detection. Post‑exam, the blade unit is discarded or recycled, and the autoclavable dilator is sterilized for reuse. This design eliminates sudden force, reduces cold discomfort and vulnerability, upholds dignity, and improves diagnostic accuracy and procedural efficiency.

Design process

We began by researching and building an in-depth understanding of pelvic procedures, cervical cancer, and the medical tools in use. From the outset, we immersed ourselves in clinical environments—conducting interviews, surveys, and ride‑along observations with gynecologists, nurses, adolescents, trauma survivors, and trans individuals—to map the emotional and procedural pain points of standard pelvic exams. Guided by these insights, we sketched a dozen biomimetic concepts (from conical to twist‑lock flaps) and evaluated them via weighted concept‑matrix, iteratively evaluating it with doctors and patients. The highlighted concepts were 3D‑printed for rapid prototyping; early three‑petal models revealed uneven pressure, prompting a shift to a four‑petal design with varied surface areas for lateral and posterior blades. We then employed FEA to refine the petal geometry and screw threads for smooth, predictable dilation while minimizing material stress. Parallel material trials compared PLA, PP, and PS for comfort and durability, leading us to clear PP blades and a medical‑grade PS dilator core. Collaborating with engineers, we are integrating a CMOS camera and LED into the dilator tip and building a dataset for leveraging ML for cancer detection, and building a comprehensive tool.

How it is different

Unlike painful and rigid metallic or single‑size disposable specula, Nia’s four‑petal system adapts to 95% of anatomies through three blade sizes, distributing force evenly to cut pain by up to 50%, and avoids vaginal wall collapse into view. Traditional tools require separate colposcopes; Nia embeds a camera and light, eliminating extra equipment and reducing exam time by 20–30%. Moreover, ML integrations would further the diagnostic accuracy and assistance of the device. Compared to international multi‑petal models (₹12K+), Nia would cost significantly less per kit (reusable core + disposable petals), making it affordable for low‑resource clinics. Self‑insertion empowers patients, addressing cultural stigma and increasing screening uptake. Its recyclable disposables and autoclavable core combine economic and environmental sustainability—no other speculum delivers this blend of comfort, precision, affordability, and medical assistance and efficiency.

Future plans

We plan to begin with finalizing the prototype’s structure using clear PP petals and a medical‑grade PS core, and conduct preliminary benchtop and human‑factor testing and trials. Forming a community with our patient-doctor discussion group, we wish to drive awareness campaigns and screening measures, training on our speculum, introducing self-insertion to rural zones, and evaluating our ML model to improve accuracy. Next, we’ll finalize production tooling, secure ISO 13485 and CDSCO/FDA approvals, and conduct clinical trials in partner hospitals. Deploying units across India and the world, we take a step towards mitigating cervical cancer.

Awards

Nia Speculum has received a BIRAC (Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India) grant through the Samvardhan Programme led by PIEDS BITS Pilani, Studio Carbon, and Birla Carbon.