Oral Insert Manifold Performance Verification
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing oral inserts face challenges in efficiently cleaning oral anatomy due to clogged manifolds or nozzles caused by residual resin, leading to uneven fluid flow and inconsistent performance, which is difficult to test and diagnose given the customized nature of each user's anatomy and varying nozzle configurations.
Innovation Solution
The technique involves testing each manifold individually by generating a pressure-flow (PQ) curve at different flow rates, using flow balancing ports to equalize pressure drops, and comparing the results to upper and lower limit curves to determine functional or defective nozzles, thereby reducing testing time and resources.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If individual nozzle testing is performed for each fluid nozzle, then measurement precision is improved, but loss of time increases due to customized positioning requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The oral insert is divided into multiple manifolds, and each manifold is tested individually by isolating it from others using closure elements. This segmentation allows parallel testing of multiple manifolds without interference, reducing total testing time while maintaining measurement precision for each manifold's nozzles
Solution Approach 2:
The system pre-positions a sensor at a fixed offset location before testing begins. This preliminary positioning eliminates the need to reposition the sensor for each individual nozzle, significantly reducing testing time while maintaining measurement accuracy through the predetermined sensor placement
2Manufacturing precision
If post-manufacturing cleaning is implemented to remove residual resin, then manufacturing precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
A cleaning process is performed immediately after manufacturing and before the oral insert is used. This preliminary cleaning removes residual resin from manifolds and nozzles while the device is still accessible, ensuring manufacturing precision without adding complexity to the final product design
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces a separate cleaning mechanism as an intermediary step between manufacturing and usage. This intermediary process handles the resin removal without requiring complex integrated cleaning features within the oral insert itself, maintaining device simplicity while achieving thorough cleaning
Data Source
AI summary
A manifold of a plurality of manifolds associated with an oral insert is selected. The manifold includes a set of nozzles. Each of the plurality of manifolds is associated with a same expected performance within a threshold tolerance. A performance of the manifold is tested in part by generating a pressure-flow curve for the manifold based on corresponding measurements performed at a plurality of different flow rates and determining that the manifold is defective in response to the generated pressure-flow curve for the manifold not being bounded by an upper limit curve and a lower limit curve. In response to determining that the generated pressure-flow curve for the manifold not being bounded by the upper limit curve and the lower limit curve, forgoing testing of one or more remaining manifolds associated with the oral insert is forgone and the oral insert is determined to be defected.