它能做什麼
The Tilbaka back brace applies pressure to the body of patients to correct the curvature of the spine. With the help of a flexible pressure sensor it can collect data to improve the care and functionality of the brace. It supports the patients and the doctors.
你的靈感
In my last year as a student product development I was looking for a theme for my final research and development project. My girlfriend and her sister both suffer from the condition and were using or had been using the traditional brace treatment. In this treatment they experienced some difficulties and this was the reason I started my research on the treatment methods. This personal connection to some patients made it possible to narrow my research to the most profound difficulties through the entire treatment. By talking to specialists I concluded that the Cheneau brace was the most effective but had some problems that could be solved.
怎樣運行的
The Tilbaka brace helps patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (deformation of the spine of girls between the age 11 and 17). It applies pressure to the body with the help of an customized structure and an internal adjustable pressure pad. The workings of the brace are controlled with an integrated flexible pressure sensor that collects data and provides information to the specialist and the patient. By controlling the effectiveness of the brace the digital system can suggest adjustments to the patient as well as the specialized doctor. With an application the Tilbaka brace communicates with different actors such as the patient and the doctor. It stimulates the patients to wear the brace the right amount of time and makes it possible to plan this time. The settings of the closing systems are controlled and make it possible for the patient to constantly adjust the brace to their specific needs without interfering with the functionality of the brace.
設計過程
In the first phase of the project I conducted my research, this research consisted of desk research, patient observations, patient interviews, specialist interviews and observations. Here I collected the different problems for different actors in the entire threatment. This research resulted in the following product definition: a growing brace that evolves with the patient through their treatment and at the same time observes and stimulates the patient for an effective and comfortable treatment of scoliosis. In the next phase I started prototyping the brace structure and different closing mechanisms. In this phase I also started working on the flexible sensor itself to integrate this in a functional brace. These different systems were then placed on the patients to test the working and evaluate it in the presence of these patients. By talking to specialists I then redesigned the different parts until we were satisfied. In the last phase I looked at the financial aspect of the new brace and connected this with the benefits of the new treatment. The combination of the expertise of specialists the opinion of patients and the financial aspect resulted in the final prototype of the Tilbaka brace. The problems of the first braces were solved and digital aspect was finalized.
怎麼不一樣？
Why is the Tilbaka different than the traditional brace treatment? The integration of digital systems and the use of adjustable pressure pads makes it possible to not only customize the brace on the form of the patient but also on the specific activities of the patient. It controls patients and provides feedback between different consultations to improve the effectiveness of the brace. By measuring the pressure inside the brace in the entire surface of the pressure pad makes it possible to control the effectiveness of the entire system. In the more traditional treatment problems are only controlled every six months and rely only on the experience of the specialist and the limited feedback of the patient. The Tilbaka system does not overrule the experience of the specialist but provides crucial feedback and support that can improve the work of the specialist and the overall effectiveness of the brace treatment.
未來計劃
The most important next step in this project are the clinical tests. By conducting these tests we can prove the effectiveness of the brace and form final conclusion to present to some specialized doctors of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. I already applied for a clinical trial and got admission for this research so this will be the first big next step. The sensoring systems and application are now just functional prototypes but I hope to finalize these aspect and make a production ready total system. The possibility to 3D print the final product was already tested and can be finalized with an external 3D print company.
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