Overview
ME 40: Engineering Design I
Tufts University, Spring 2023
This final project was a collaboration with Youtuber Natalie Fierce to make applying baking spray less frustrating for her. Natalie lives with Cerebral Palsy and has limited mobility. Pam Pal allows the user to actuate an aerosol spray using a power grip, rather than depressing the nozzle vertically.
Tufts University, Spring 2023
This final project was a collaboration with Youtuber Natalie Fierce to make applying baking spray less frustrating for her. Natalie lives with Cerebral Palsy and has limited mobility. Pam Pal allows the user to actuate an aerosol spray using a power grip, rather than depressing the nozzle vertically.
Problem Statement
My team began by reviewing a video of Natalie using Pam to cover a baking pan in order to finalize the problem statement below.
Natalie has difficulty uniformly applying her favorite aerosol non-stick coating on a pan when baking in the kitchen with a helper. She struggles to maintain the correct position of her fingers while moving the can to spray the coating on every part of the pan. Our solution should allow Natalie to independently maintain the dispensing action, allowing her to sufficiently cover the pan after the nonstick coating has been shaken and therefore making baking more enjoyable.
Natalie has difficulty uniformly applying her favorite aerosol non-stick coating on a pan when baking in the kitchen with a helper. She struggles to maintain the correct position of her fingers while moving the can to spray the coating on every part of the pan. Our solution should allow Natalie to independently maintain the dispensing action, allowing her to sufficiently cover the pan after the nonstick coating has been shaken and therefore making baking more enjoyable.
Ideation & Prototyping
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We began ideation by conducting market research to understand existing solutions. Knowing that Natalie only has use of her right hand and that she is stronger in a pulling motion than compression, we decided to design a can adapter that actuates the spray as a trigger.
Some initial sketches and a low fidelity prototype allowed us to begin realizing our design and refining our approach. |
An early design sketch
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(very) Low fidelity prototype
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Iteration and Final Prototype
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The main challenges during iteration were improving the trigger piece and identifying the best material for our product.
Due to our limited time and resources available, our choices came down to 3D printing and laser cutting. The base was 3D printed from the start to ensure a tight fit on the diameter of the Pam can. In an attempt to minimize the material used in our design, the top of the PamPal was first tested as a laser-cut piece with living hinges. I soon discovered that living hinges are not load bearing, and we pivoted to fully 3D printed design. We also realized that two points of contact between the top and bottom halves of the design was sufficient to prevent rotation. The trigger arm went through three iterations. After attaching the first trigger arm, we realized that a good amount of finger dexterity is required for the index finger to reach out and grab the trigger. The two alternatives were to decrease the angle of the trigger, or to design an extra bend in the trigger that brings the lever closer to the can. Both designs were tested, and the extra bend proved to be more effective. |
Final Product & Creating a Manual
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Our solution allows Natalie to actuate a Pam bottle with less effort and eliminates the risk of the spray being obstructed by her finger. Our final artifact includes two pieces: a base and a cap with a trigger arm. The two pieces are secured together with velcro. The most important component to the functioning of our artifact is the trigger arm, which serves two purposes. First, it changes the position of Natalie’s hand to a power grip, making actuation easier and more ergonomic. Second, the long lever arm produces a significant mechanical advantage, reducing the force Natalie is required to exert and reducing fatigue. The product is designed to be easily assembled and disassembled so that the non-stick cooking spray can be stored with its cap on to prevent any accidental spray during storage.
We created a short instructional video on how to use Pam Pal, along with a one page user manual. Both can be found via the links below. |
Reflections
My team's work taught me the value of taking time to thoroughly empathize with the user and test from their point of view. If we hadn't done our testing with the framework of Natalie's hand range, we wouldn't have adjusted the trigger properly. If we had more time, I would revisit the trigger and adjust the length even more. Natalie provided the feedback that the trigger was still too far, resulting in her actuating the spray before she intended to. My team had also discussed designing a baking tray stand so that the pan is tilted towards the user, rather than sitting flat on the table in order to create a more even spray. Furthermore, I appreciated the range of solutions that teams created. I initially thought there would only be a couple of solutions for a design, yet each group thought of a unique mechanism for assisting Natalie. This will continue to challenge me during brainstorming sessions to think outside-the-box.
