UK Design, Engineering students create products for the future of healthcare and electric mobility

Students from the University of Kentucky’s College of Design and the Stanley and Karen Pigman College of Engineering teamed up with UK HealthCare, and other industry professionals, to create innovative medical devices and products addressing critical challenges in other industries. 

Students in PRD 320, Assistant Professor Kristi Bartlett’s third-year studio course for students in the Department of Product Design, and BME 420, the capstone course for biomedical engineering students, spent the entire Fall 2024 semester ideating, designing and prototyping a product to address an issue in the healthcare field.  

The students worked in teams with a designated clinical collaborator from UK HealthCare to research some of the common problems these clinicians are facing and brainstorm solutions. Partners include Dr. Nicholas Fowler, a UK Ophthalmology resident; Dr. Mark Fritz in UK Otolaryngology; Dr. Mark Hoffman, Dr. Bryan Rone and Dr. George Thomas in UK Obstetrics and Gynecology and Dr. Jeffrey Selby in UK Orthopedic Surgery and Sports Medicine.

“The collaboration between product design and biomedical engineering students began in the Spring of 2023,” Davis Ferriell, lecturer in the F. Joseph Halcomb III, M.D. Department of Biomedical Engineering, said. “After nearly two years of refining the collaboration with Professor Bartlett, we are seeing great results and solving real-world challenges in the classroom. Any chance we get as instructors to expose students to these successes and challenges in the academic setting is a positive result.” 

Several projects addressed challenges in obstetrics and gynecology, such as improving the accuracy and comfort of IUD insertion procedures and redesigning traditional pelvic exam tools:  

• Gynosheath: A small camera that integrates with a hysteroscope to ensure accurate placement and visualization during IUD insertion, reducing pain and complications due to standard blind insertion practices.  

• Proxima: A uterine sound device designed to provide real-time spatial awareness to minimize contact with sensitive uterine tissue during IUD insertion. 

• GynAdapt: A gynecological exam device designed to enhance comfort and safety during pelvic exams through a flexible, inflatable mechanism.  

Other teams tackled issues in diverse fields, from orthopedics to optometry and even outer space: 

• SpacerMate: A femoral spacer mold, to be used in treating periprosthetic joint infections (PJI), a common condition following hip replacements.  

• Palash Ocular Extenders: An eyepiece extender designed for slit lamps, a commonly used machine during routine eye exams, to limit the need for physicians to lean down to use the machine, lessening the development of musculoskeletal pain in their neck and back 

• StellarSuit: A wearable device for astronauts that uses negative pressure to counteract vision impairment caused by fluid shifts in microgravity.  

Additionally, several design students partnered with peers in an Electrical and Computer Engineering capstone course. Faculty and industry professionals approached Regina Hannemann, senior lecturer in the department, with product ideas. 

“Engineering students brought functionality to the projects with their electrical components, and design students brought their creative eye and knack for building appealing forms,” Hannemann said. “This collaboration not only elevated the projects but also mirrored how collaborative engineers and product designers are in an industry setting.” 

Five of the seven PRD/ ECE teams were funded by the Pigman College of Engineering’s Reese Terry Award, which funds capstone research projects focused on solving medical and health issues. 

• Animal Crate: An adaptive, more accessible animal noise toy aimed toward children with a wide range of disabilities.  

• Clueless: An adaptive version of the Clue Junior board game which utilizes multi-sensory feedback to make the game accessible for children with motor and cognitive impairments. 

• HoverPal: An autonomous drone which tracks patient movements, records rehabilitation exercises and securely transmits data for clinical review to enhance compliance in stroke recovery patients. 

• Sensory Wall V2: A modular interactive sensory toy system, with each unit offering a unique sensory experience, designed to be used individually or stacked together. 

• Whoops: A modified version of the board game Sorry! that is more accessible for those with visual, auditory and motor function impairments. 

These projects were sponsored by faculty members such as Patrick Kitzman, from the College of Health Sciences.  

“These projects allow us to bring together the expertise from across UK to push the envelope of accessible toys and games so that all individuals of all abilities can participate,” Kitzman said. 

The remaining two PRD/ECE projects were funded through student competitions. The Hydro Hustlers team designed an efficient, reliable, remote-controlled and competitive electric-powered boat as a part of the American Society of Naval Engineers’ "Promoting Electric Propulsion (PEP)" competition slated for April.  The Big Blue Baron team designed an unmanned aerial system fit with a camera and machine learning to enable object detection and mapping as a part of the RoboNation Student Unmanned Aerial Systems competition set to take place in June. 

"One thing my students take away from this project is practical experience working side-by-side with engineers because many product designers will work in interdisciplinary teams in their future jobs,” Bartlett said. “Also, since product design is a lesser-known field, this project helps my students practice demonstrating the value of design to their team members and other stakeholders.” 

Engineering students have continued refining the projects as part of their year-long capstone course in Spring 2025, while many product design students have built on their team’s work in an elective course this semester too. Projects sponsored by Kitzman aim to develop usable prototypes for real-world implementation later this year.