InclusiveDESIGN

Medical stretcher form ideation

This is the final vacuum formed mould. I had it formed externally by a company called Acron plastics. They did a fantastic job and worked with a tight time frame. 

I used the 6 Axis CNC Robot to mill a top and bottom mould for my vacuum formed prototype. 

Graduation catalog image

Vacuum formed model for fibreglassing 

I decided to fibreglass the inside of my vacuum formed model. I Intended to give it structural integrity and therefore have a final prototype that would be capable of bearing weight. I encountered a few issues but learnt a lot about the properties of fibreglass and resin. 

6 Axis CNC machining process 

6 Axis CNC machining. 

This is a prototype that I made using 123D Make. I used it to chop my CAD model that I had developed using t-splines for Rhino. The prototype was a good indication to how the surface was going to look and feel. There are still some components that need working on such as the telescopic tube mechanism and the internal sliding parts. 

This is a scale drawing of my stretcher that I drew to get a better understanding to the size that I would be working at and to help generate a scale CAD model. I have been learning T-Splines the plugin for Rhino to develop the organic shape that I wish to use for my final design. 

I dismantled this suitcase to get an understanding as to how the mechanism works inside the telescopic tubing. 

Old school sketching techniques, texture boards, markers, pencils and whiteout. I have been concentrating on refining the form to better reflect the needs of the users.  

The form that I created below is starting to look like something that vaguely resembles the stretcher. Hopefully I can knit it all together and import it into TS Elements without too much trouble. 

Here are some screen shots of my failed attempts to use T-Splines. I decided that perusing the use of T-Splines will be beneficial to my final design and the over all aesthetic that I will be aiming to achieve.

I have spent the last few days watching video tutorials such as this one to try and understand t splines. T-Splines will give me flexibility to change and manipulate my surface of the stretcher body. 

I made this 1:1 scale mock up to get a better idea of the form. It was generated using 123D Make and laser cut from 3mm MDF. The model took about a day to put together once the pieces had been cut. I then attached some 45kg cabinet draw rollers to the model to simulate the telescopic capabilities of the model. I realised how much work I have got to put into refining my form before its ready to produce my final model.