Industrial - Bachelors
The ProSurge BurrMan model is a 3D printed training model targeted at junior neurosurgeons to practice the burr hole procedure. The goal of the product is to make practicing this procedure to be as realistic as possible and boost user confidence.
Burr-hole surgery is a process where a neurosurgeon uses a special tool called a craniotome and drills into a person skull to access their brain. There are several reasons why a surgeon would need to do this procedure, such as conducting a biopsy or draining a leak. Right now, there are many ways to practice this surgery from simple everyday household items to complicated models and obviously cadavers. However, these solutions either are not that realistic or too expensive.
My project was in collaboration with an existing project completed by a PhD candidate at Herston Biofabrication Institute, where I was tasked with redesigning and improving the current product to be sold and manufactured at a low level in house at HBI. This came with a few limitations which were discovered after doing a study., The study included simple desktop research, followed by an observation of how an actual surgeon would use the device and finally 3 interviews with surgeons and also the original creator.
Summarizing the research the product has to be simple, as simple is best, realistic and helped boost the user’s confidence when using the product. Keeping all these points in the back of my mind I came up with the solution that is the BurrMan
The aim of the project was to discover opportunities on how 3D Printing (3DP) can be used for surgical education and its complex practices in the most efficient and affordable way. To achieve this, a report was created where it introduces a literature review which shows the current and emerging tech in additive manufacturing, and showcases its limitations and usefulness. The second section of this report followed the research undertaken, the approach and the procedures used with an analysis of the result. The next part covered how the results are related to the literature and what next steps to take with the opportunities and design implications that will follow. The report then concludes with a brief summary of the findings.
The study conducted included 2 interviews with surgeons at Royal Brisbane Women’s Hospital and an observation of how the previous product was used. This study and desktop research helped form the 3 main opportunities of the project which are listed below.
Opportunity to boost confidence levels of trainees due to lack of experience, this can be improved by having design that focuses on the ease of use.
Opportunity to simplify the training procedure as study found that simplicity in design works best.
Opportunity to have realistic characteristics in simulations due to current design not having enough. This can be done by adding more features of the human head.
The design uses a realistic model of a partial but large human head mounted on a rotatable clamp. This gives the users a physical aspect of realism and familiarity. The Materials used will be mainly PLA with white for most parts and a skin tone PLA for the head for a faster process. The clamping system was inspired from the design of a traditional microscope while the colour set from typical hospital equipment.
An integrated clamp with rubber feet makes the fixing task much easier and hassle-free. The original design featured no clamping system meaning users had to source their own form of clamping to secure the model to a table.
The head can be rotated at 90° or 60° intervals to better suit the user’s orientation. This allows the procedure to be conducted in an predetermined position like real surgeries. Using a simple off the shelf M6 bolt & nut keeps the head in a fixed position tightly with no rattling when drilling.
The product also leverages virtual reality to create a combination of the physical aspect which is the ,model itself and VR which can replicate a real surgical experience without actually being there. Future versions of this technology will track and display user information and performance for revision.
The design features a quick release system using a magnetic cover to keep the drill-able bone section in place. Along with the bone section there is a dura layer hidden below. This layer consists of a thin layer of silicone to imitate how silicone behaves, where the user can scratch or slice the dura using a scalpel. The bone section is printed using either PLA or PETG which can be created for a very low price.
This project allowed me to go through various ideas and directions to explore. Although I did not have enough time to make every idea I thought of physically, sketching and developing these ideas gave me an insight towards my final design.
Below are a few photos of the development of the model making process, starting from initial models to the final one.
Augustine is an industrial designer who is passionate about seamless designs that are intended to blend in complexity with simplicity. He enjoys finding innovative solutions for different problems in a manner that furthers the advancement of technology and design.