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service bureau, Piton was able to
evolve a 4-part concept into a single molded part. In addition to
reducing mold costs and total part cost,
the single part design elimated assembly labor and potential quality
control issues. The multifaceted design met requirements for
functionality, ergonomics, injection moldability, and a handheld
instrument interface. The part is approximately 1"dia x 4"
long.
Through a series of quick-turn,
$250, SLA prototype parts, performance testing was
done that confirmed the design intent. Although the production plan
(100K/yr) was for polypropylene, or polyethylene, the SLA polymer was
a reasonable approximation for the performance characteristics of
interest.
Although consulting of mold
builders was done during the initial design, it was after the design
was firmed-up that Piton queried four injection molding companies to
compare mold and molding costs. A spreadsheet was created that allowed
the client to analyze trade offs of single verses multiple cavity
tools, and injection molding run quantities. Ultimately it was decided
to build a 2 cavity base but start with just one cavity. The second
cavity insert would be added after production was underway.
In addition to the part design,
Piton helped devise a product feature that would prevent reuse of
this disposable part. This was a concern because the product was
heading to third world markets. Piton also provided conceptual design
and mock-ups of the handheld instrument to which the disposable
attaches.
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