Ostomy Valve with Tactile and Visual Position Indicators
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users of urostomy pouches face difficulties in determining the open or closed state of the valve, especially in low light conditions or for overweight individuals, due to the valve's location below the waistline and lack of effective visual and tactile indicators.
Innovation Solution
A valve with a rotatable stem and grasping region that provides both visual and tactile indications of its position, featuring a tactile element with a different feel and a raised indicator for tactile sensing, allowing users to determine the valve's state through touch.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If printed indicia are used on the valve flange to indicate valve position, then visual indication is provided, but the indication is insufficient in low light conditions and for overweight users due to valve location below waistline
Solution Approach 1:
The valve indicator is segmented into multiple sensory modalities: visual components (transparent/opaque regions, printed indicia) and tactile components (protrusions, recesses, textured surfaces). This segmentation allows the same indicator structure to convey valve state through multiple independent channels, ensuring reliable information transmission whether visual or tactile detection is used.
Solution Approach 2:
The tactile indicator features are nested within the visual indicator structure. The protrusions and recesses are integrated into the flange body that also contains printed indicia and transparent/opaque regions. This nested design allows a single component to serve dual purposes: visual indication through light transmission and tactile indication through surface geometry.
2Ease of operation
If the valve is located at the bottom of the pouch below the waistline, then proper drainage positioning is achieved, but determining valve state becomes difficult for overweight users and in low light conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The indicator system is designed to be dynamically accessible through user interaction. The tactile features (protrusions, recesses) change their spatial relationship to the user's hand as the valve stem rotates, providing dynamic tactile feedback during operation. The transparent and opaque regions also dynamically change their visual appearance as the stem rotates, altering light transmission properties to indicate valve state.
Solution Approach 2:
The indicator provides immediate feedback about valve state through both visual and tactile channels. When the user touches or approaches the valve, the protrusions and recesses provide instantaneous tactile information about whether the valve is open or closed. Similarly, the transparent/opaque regions provide immediate visual feedback about valve position without requiring the user to interpret complex visual displays.
3Ease of manufacture
If a simple printed indicia system is used, then manufacturing is simple, but the indication is not sufficiently positive or intuitive for all users
Solution Approach 1:
Different regions of the indicator have different local qualities optimized for their specific function. The flange includes transparent regions for visual indication, opaque regions for contrast, protrusions for tactile detection of open state, and recesses for tactile detection of closed state. Each local region is designed with specific properties (transparency, texture, geometry) that enhance its particular indication function while maintaining manufacturability through integrated molding.
Data Source
Figure 1~1A
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A valve that is scalable to an associated container having an interior fluid storage region is adapted to permit and stop flow of fluid from the fluid storage region. The valve includes a valve body (28) scalable to the container and a stem (30) mounted to the valve body having a portion in flow communication with the fluid storage region. The stem is movable relative to the valve body between an open position to permit flow from the fluid storage region through the valve, and a closed position to stop flow through the valve. The stem has a grasping region (68) spaced from the valve body. The grasping region is adapted rotate the stem to move the valve between the open and closed positions. The grasping region has first and second sides. One of the sides has a tactile indicator (74) to provide indication of the position of the valve, the other of the side is devoid of the tactile indicator.