Name: Ankur Rawal

Guide: Prof. B K Chakravarthy

Course: Industrial Design

Credits: DIC (Design Innovation Centre), KEM Hospital

Frugal Vein Detector for Kids

Intravenous injections have been used in the medical industry for various drug deliveries. Locations for conducting venipuncture are: Hospitals, Path labs, dispensaries, etc. A key issue in this procedure lies in finding a suitable spot for injection. Many individuals face difficulties in as their vein is not visible or close to the surface enough for a successful venipuncture. A vein detection device was made by Trivikram Annamalai, an IDC ex student in 2014. The device is currently under further development at the Design Innovation centre in IDC.

This project takes the technical learnings from the development of the vein detector and targets a specific user segment- kids owing to their specialized requirement and constraints.

Post a rigorous ethnographic study at KEM Hospital, several insights were discovered to cater to the tangible and emotional aspects of product design for kids in a hospital setting. The final product makes use of frugal yet reliable technology of LEDs with near InfraRed wavelengths to result in a high contrast visual of venal structure on the wrist of a child before injecting. The device makes use of a wrist hold familiar to doctors and nurses when attending to a child.

Kids are extremely fidgety and fear needles a lot, hence doctors hold their wrists in a typical fashion (refer to image) The hold allows for tangible benefits such as: Uncluttered access to skin surface for vein identification and puncture The thumb is used for providing traction which helps in vein stabilization Needle insertion on a stretched skin is known to be less painful and emotional benefits of a doctor’s comforting hold onto the child’s wrist