Ontex
Improving comfort, time and budget management in continence care
Realisation
- Easy to clean and useÂ
- Cost and time efficientÂ
- Qualified for mass production
Introduction
Incontinence is a serious concern in retirement homes. It’s an unpleasant condition for the elderly and requires a lot of time and effort from the nursing staff to give their patients the best care. To lighten the burden of the caregivers Ontex, a leading international personal hygiene company, developed the ORIZON SMART solutions with printed sensor technology. The system automatically alerts caregivers via an app when the smart diaper needs to be changed. This results in better care and improved time and budget management.
Challenge
Ontex developed the absorbent products, electronic devices, front-end and back-end software. The company reached out to Achilles Design to benefit from our professional services on the mechanical design for the Orizon clip-ons as well as the charging stations taking into account certain requirements:
- Cleanability:Â The devices need to be easy to clean, free from dirt traps and waterproof (IP65).
- ISO-13485:Â The devices are developed to fulfil this quality standard.
- Easy to use:Â The clip-ons need to be easy to handle by the caregivers but difficult to remove by the patients. They also need to be comfortable to wear on the absorbent products.
- Good interconnection to the interface of the printed sensor: The attachment needs to be secure and must ensure good connection throughout the use time of the absorbent product.
- User friendly feedback by the clip-on device:Â The clip-on ensures useful information through an integrated display and with good visibility of the LED light.
- Mind the budget:Â The clip-ons should be reusable, robust and consist of limited materials and parts to maintain the budget.Â
Design
After thorough research and understanding of the technology used for the ORIZON SMART diapers our creative team of product designers and engineers turned their ideas into a series of design concepts. What followed were several prototypes, evaluations and tests for both the clip-on as well as the charging station.
The clip-on
The device slides easily in the front pocket of the absorbent product and is fixated with a snapping cover. The cover clicks over the sides of the pocket, holding it in place and preventing the device to slide out. We designed the snapping cover in such a way that it does not touch or damage the sensor area. The button of the device has no thick edges so dirt can’t be trapped there. The green cover is easy to remove for cleaning and the housing of the clip-on device is welded ultrasonically. Because this is an automated process it’s not only cost-effective (saves manpower) but also makes mass production possible.
The charging station
This station is powered on USB-C and provides energy for up to 6 clip-on devices. The clip-ons are connected with the station through magnetic connections. Fully charged the devices will last 2 weeks.Â
After we provided Ontex with designs and prototypes for the clip-ons and charging station, the company started to perform several in-use pilot cases in nursing homes throughout Europe. The results have been used to validate the design and to enhance the development. We’ve ensured the design transfer to the supplier and the technical detailing for mass production, making this a fully custom-made project.Â
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