Medical Simulation Toy with Fluid Pathway for Pediatric Anxiety Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current devices for demonstrating medical procedures to patients, especially children, are not realistic or accurate, and materials used can pose infection risks due to high germ retention rates, failing to effectively alleviate anxiety and educate users about medical treatments involving fluid infusion, withdrawal, or tube connection.
Innovation Solution
A toy resembling a life-form with a 3D hollow interior containing a cylinder-plunger assembly and connectors for leak-proof fluid communication, allowing the use of real medical components for hands-on play and education, including needle-free simulations to familiarize users with medical instruments and procedures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If traditional toys with fur or fabric materials are used to demonstrate medical procedures, then the device is friendly and non-threatening to children, but the materials have high germ retention rate which exposes patients to infection risk
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameter from traditional fur/fabric to medical-grade silicone rubber, which maintains the soft, touchable quality needed for child-friendliness while fundamentally altering the germ retention characteristics to be hospital-disposable safe
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a disposable model where the silicone rubber toy is used once and then discarded, eliminating the need for repeated sterilization while ensuring no germ retention issues. This allows the use of realistic medical components without long-term contamination risks
2Manufacturing precision
If realistic medical components are used in the toy, then the educational value and realism are improved, but the device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a simplified copy of the medical procedure environment using a silicone rubber body with embedded connectors that replicate the essential aspects of real medical procedures without requiring actual needles or complex medical equipment, achieving realism through representative simulation rather than exact replication
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts only the essential functional elements needed for educational purposes (connectors, fluid pathways, basic medical components) and removes unnecessary complexities, focusing on the core learning objectives while simplifying the overall device structure
3Reliability
If needle-free simulations are used, then safety for first-time users is improved, but the accuracy of demonstrating actual medical procedures is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses needle-free connectors that can be safely attached and detached multiple times to allow children to practice and become familiar with the procedure beforehand, building confidence and reducing anxiety before the actual medical procedure where real needles will be used
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a intermediate training device that bridges the gap between no procedure and real needle procedure, using realistic-looking but safe connectors and fluid simulation to teach the essential steps and build comfort without the dangers of actual needles
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a toy having a head, a torso, a pair of forelimbs and a pair of hindlimbs to represent a life form. The toy is a 3-D, hollow article, which is made up of a sculptured front member and a rear cover. The interior of the 10 toy has a hollow member to provide a variable volume to contain a fluid. The hollow member may be a deformable bag or a cylinder-plunger assembly. The cylinder-plunger assembly may be joined to a connector and a tube in leak-proof fluid communication. A first end of the connector is exposed to the exterior. The toy is useful for demonstrating a medical treatment or procedure involving infusing, withdrawing or transferring a fluid, or connecting a feeding or breathing tube during treatment. The toy/deformable bag may represent an organ.