Challenge
Develop an airless haemostat spray system to eliminate the risk of embolism during surgery.
Approach
Drawing on our extensive experience developing surgical devices, our engineers and scientists created a number of prototypes based on initial concepts.
Outcome
Refined our design based on user feedback to produce a fully functional proof-of-principle device for delivering powdered haemostats accurately, safely and cheaply.
At a glance
Client
Internal
Services
MedTech
Surgical
Services
Industrial design
Engineering
Human factors
A haemostat spray powder which can’t cause embolism
Convesaid illustrates how we care about all aspects of development, from the clever new technology and engineering, to the user experience and industrialisation.
Iain Ansell, Head of Surgical
Convesaid’s airflow design uses the Coandă principle (the tendency of an airflow to follow an adjacent curved surface) to ensure that only the haemostat powder exits the device, enabling surgical teams to work without worrying about potentially deadly embolism.
User-centred design
Following successful demonstration of our first prototype, we gathered user feedback to further refine the design. The original prototype was connected to an external pump and power source, but feedback suggested a handheld solution would better meet stakeholder needs.
Ergonomic trigger
We also discovered that people pulled the trigger before switching the device on, so we redesigned the device’s layout to feature a lock-out which prevents the trigger from activating until the device has been switched on.
As well as eliminating the risk of embolism, we also wanted to create a device that was easy to operate, reliable and low cost.
Iain Ansell, Head of Surgical
Outcome
Convesaid is suitable for use in both laparoscopic and open surgery, and the powder is delivered as a fine, fully controllable jet. Surgical teams can focus on the procedure at hand and not worry about embolism.
The making of Convesaid
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