Airy
An off-the-shelf and adjustable scoliosis brace that the teenager could wear comfortably and confidently.

MY ROLE

Conduct qualitative research, concept validation, and usability tests.

Ideate and develop the concept, CAD, and working prototype.

Create renderings, animation, and packaging design.

Design the App UI prototype and website UI and coding.

My deepest gratitude goes to my mentors, Michael Laskowski, Claire McKone, and Dr. Craig Eberson, who assisted me with design direction and clarified my scoliosis understanding.

Year

2022

Scoliosis

is a lateral curvature of the spine,

that occurs most often before puberty.

Problem Statement
I found that the existing braces encounter many obstacles with the patient compliance, fabrication, and their disposals, all of which limit their adoption.

MANUFACTURING

THE USE OF PLASTER MOLD

HAND-MADE TECHNIQUE

4-WEEK MAKING PERIOD makes it pricey and takes a long time to acquire.

Privacy

When the patient is only wearing thin temporary clothing, it requires close contact with the patient’s body throughout the molding process.

COMPLIANCE

LOW COMFORT

POOR AESTHETICS

make it very hard for patients to wear them for enough hours a day.

scoliosis-brace-child-doctor-1200x628-facebook copy.jpg

Effectiveness

Low compliance leads to reduced dose, which means the patient’s treatment is less effective

photo-1597348989645-46b190ce4918 copy.jpg

Recyclability

Recycling the brace by the users themselves has never been easy to do.

User Interviews
I contacted 6 scoliosis patients online who had worn brace and now in 3 different but common stages of treatment. I distilled their complaints into 6 basic issues as shown below.
Source: CurvyGirls, YouTube, FaceBook

Benchmarking

Statement of Solution

Design an off-the-shelf and ergonomic brace that the teenager would wear for 18 hours a day on average.

Target User and Market

Mood board

Ideation
I believe that making an off-the-shelf brace that can be easily set up and adjusted to fit all target users can eliminate the long manufacturing period and unprotected privacy issue of brace making process. So I explored some concepts in this direction.

Prototype
With thermoplastic and screws, I made rough prototypes to validate my ideas, and select concept Balance to move forward.

Concept Development
Carrying the lessons from rough prototypes, I explored different hardware, style, and installation experience on several variations.

Concept development - 3D print
3D prints allow me to check how the brace fits the human body and the proportion of each piece.

Concept development - 1:1 prototype
This prototype was built to address concerns about ergonomics, scale, comfortability, and how easy it is to go about one's everyday routines while wearing my design.

Storyboard
Users can assemble the brace at home with assistance from their family OR visit a clinic for professional help.

Back support

Screw the brace piece onto the back rail, user can install it vertically or at +20 degree / -20 degree.

Front support

Screw the anti-bend front support and cord hooks onto the brace piece.

Air padding

Paste the air padding onto the brace velcro. The air padding can be hand pumped to fill the gap between brace and body.

Nylon cord

Put the white hooks onto the brace piece, and then button the cord onto the hooks.

Pattern study
To further explore the aesthetics, I used Grasshopper to create graceful and fabric-like patterns which wouldn't make the user embarrassed if her brace was exposed.

Gradient dot
Sporty

Vertical stripe
Rhythmic

Labyrinth hex
Energetic

Gingko
Elegant

Gradient floral
Adorable

CMF Development
I explored different materials and CMF combinations for users to explore their identities.

Validation test - 1st round
The first validation test was held in the Orthopedics studio at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, where I invited 4 teenagers with scoliosis to try on and move around in the brace prototype.

Final design

Concept development - 1:1 prototype
In recent years, wearing a worn time monitor with scoliosis brace has been obligatory in scoliosis therapy to uncover and help improve the compliance issue. I prototyped the monitor with an Arduino UNO and wrote it in C++ for instructional purposes in the final show.

Branding

App UI Development
The APP identifies and improves patient compliance issues, provides exercise to keep muscles engaged, and allows patients and doctors to communicate instantly on the treatment plans.

Web UI Development
The website serves as a platform for introducing the product and provides each customer with an A.I.-generated installation guide. I plan to code and launch the website Airy.com by April 15th.

Airy An off-the-shelf and adjustable scoliosis brace that the teenager could wear comfortably and confidently.

Year

Problem Statement I found that the existing braces encounter many obstacles with the patient compliance, fabrication, and their disposals, all of which limit their adoption.

MANUFACTURING

Privacy

COMPLIANCE

Effectiveness

Recyclability

User Interviews I contacted 6 scoliosis patients online who had worn brace and now in 3 different but common stages of treatment. I distilled their complaints into 6 basic issues as shown below. Source: CurvyGirls, YouTube, FaceBook

Benchmarking

Statement of Solution

Target User and Market

Mood board

Ideation I believe that making an off-the-shelf brace that can be easily set up and adjusted to fit all target users can eliminate the long manufacturing period and unprotected privacy issue of brace making process. So I explored some concepts in this direction.

Prototype With thermoplastic and screws, I made rough prototypes to validate my ideas, and select concept Balance to move forward.

Concept Development Carrying the lessons from rough prototypes, I explored different hardware, style, and installation experience on several variations.

Concept development - 3D print 3D prints allow me to check how the brace fits the human body and the proportion of each piece.

Concept development - 1:1 prototype This prototype was built to address concerns about ergonomics, scale, comfortability, and how easy it is to go about one's everyday routines while wearing my design.

Storyboard Users can assemble the brace at home with assistance from their family OR visit a clinic for professional help.