Sleep Apnea Mask Prototype Design SURVEY PLEASE TAKE! :)

[Hose_Head]

So I just took your survey and by the questions you asked and the choices you offered I can see that you have not read enough forums to be anywhere close to designing a mask (along with some information in the posts above). You need to define the problem, not only what are people looking for in a mask, but what problems do they have with the current masks. I will discover these yourselves if you try sleeping with one. Read posts and keep track of what people are complaining about, what you think their compliant is really caused by, and what you are going to try and solve.

You also have missed one type of CPAP machine.

Don't give up, but everything you need to know is stuck in the middle of a bunch of boring text on forums concerning something that you don't suffer from.

If you do get a machine set it to 20-25 cm of H2O, put the mask on (any mask) and turn the machine on. Some people sleep like that.

they are not designing anything; this is all about a school project and what they need to do to get a grade. They sit around in a group, through a bunch of shit against the wall until they come up with a thesis which they think is brilliant, but in actuality will probably never work. They then do their research (that is us) and come up with a design that has not been tried before. Doesn't matter that it wont work, in only has to impress the professor.

I really have no problem with this if they were honest up front. Hi, I am in college and for our term paper, project, whatever we are exploring what the next cpap mask might look like and I would really appreciate it if you would share your experience and knowledge with us so we can get a good grade. Rather we get some self important college kid trying to dupe us by telling how great he is going to make our lives.

You have a point. But hey, we all started someplace.

I prefer to take a little more positive approach. You never know, one of this group students might come up with a solution that can benefit us all - if and when it comes to market. A nudge in the right direction from any of us could be the creative spark needed to make it happen.

[jniemeie]

So I just took your survey and by the questions you asked and the choices you offered I can see that you have not read enough forums to be anywhere close to designing a mask (along with some information in the posts above). You need to define the problem, not only what are people looking for in a mask, but what problems do they have with the current masks. I will discover these yourselves if you try sleeping with one. Read posts and keep track of what people are complaining about, what you think their compliant is really caused by, and what you are going to try and solve.

You also have missed one type of CPAP machine.

Don't give up, but everything you need to know is stuck in the middle of a bunch of boring text on forums concerning something that you don't suffer from.

If you do get a machine set it to 20-25 cm of H2O, put the mask on (any mask) and turn the machine on. Some people sleep like that.

they are not designing anything; this is all about a school project and what they need to do to get a grade. They sit around in a group, through a bunch of shit against the wall until they come up with a thesis which they think is brilliant, but in actuality will probably never work. They then do their research (that is us) and come up with a design that has not been tried before. Doesn't matter that it wont work, in only has to impress the professor.

I really have no problem with this if they were honest up front. Hi, I am in college and for our term paper, project, whatever we are exploring what the next CPAP mask might look like and I would really appreciate it if you would share your experience and knowledge with us so we can get a good grade. Rather we get some self important college kid trying to dupe us by telling how great he is going to make our lives.

I apologize if our survey has offended you. I can assure you that we are not "throwing shit at a wall in order to get a grade. Do we get a grade? Yes. But we are not interested in wasting our time or yours developing some nonsensical prototype that has no chance of being a real product. I reiterate the fact that we are making a prototype, not guaranteeing a product. We did not guarantee a product in our survey. I indicated in a post that we are trying to follow a logical design process. Obtaining information from customers is one of those first steps, and it happens to be that posting a survey in forums is a good way to get a response in a situation where you cannot simply go door to door asking people if they have Sleep Apnea.

We were honest up front, go ahead a reread our statement before the survey, here it is for your convenience:

"We are a group of Senior Mechanical Engineering Students at Stevens Institute of Technology. We are designing a new Sleep Apnea Mask prototype that has the potential to change the way Sleep Apnea patients cope with the disorder. The prevalence of Sleep Apnea, combined with the existence of dissatisfaction in comfort and convenience of devices currently on the market provides our team with an opportunity to create a product that successfully mitigates the symptoms of Sleep Apnea while keeping comfort and convenience in mind. With your help and contribution of information, we hope to make a prototype that could potentially lead to a life changing device for Sleep Apnea patients!"

We identify ourselves, state we are designing a prototype, and give a simplified statement of our reasons for developing such a prototype.

I can admit that the last sentence may be a bit misleading, it is simply intended as an enthusiastic statement to show you (an individual with Sleep Apnea) that we are passionate about this project. 2 out of the 4 members on the team have family members with Sleep Apnea, so we do have (even if somewhat vague at this moment in time) an understanding of some of the hardships that come with disorder.

Lastly, I must address your personal "attack" at me as a student. You do not know me, and your rash conclusion of what my intentions are come off as mildly immature and offensive. Why not ask what we are really trying to do? Simply lashing out at a student in a forum is really a pathetic action. I have focused my studies in product design and manufacturing and I have spent over 2 years working for medical device companies, and would consider my understanding of medical device design to be novice, but sufficient to attempt to develop a prototype device.

I am sorry that you have such a negative outlook on the work of students. Perhaps you have been harassed before by individuals who were not taking it as seriously or putting so much heart into it as I am. If anything, just try to remember that what you say does have an effect on people, and your negative approach to me does nothing but inspire me to do an even better job to prove doubters like yourself wrong.

[jniemeie]

So I just took your survey and by the questions you asked and the choices you offered I can see that you have not read enough forums to be anywhere close to designing a mask (along with some information in the posts above). You need to define the problem, not only what are people looking for in a mask, but what problems do they have with the current masks. I will discover these yourselves if you try sleeping with one. Read posts and keep track of what people are complaining about, what you think their compliant is really caused by, and what you are going to try and solve.

You also have missed one type of CPAP machine.

Don't give up, but everything you need to know is stuck in the middle of a bunch of boring text on forums concerning something that you don't suffer from.

If you do get a machine set it to 20-25 cm of H2O, put the mask on (any mask) and turn the machine on. Some people sleep like that.

they are not designing anything; this is all about a school project and what they need to do to get a grade. They sit around in a group, through a bunch of shit against the wall until they come up with a thesis which they think is brilliant, but in actuality will probably never work. They then do their research (that is us) and come up with a design that has not been tried before. Doesn't matter that it wont work, in only has to impress the professor.

I really have no problem with this if they were honest up front. Hi, I am in college and for our term paper, project, whatever we are exploring what the next cpap mask might look like and I would really appreciate it if you would share your experience and knowledge with us so we can get a good grade. Rather we get some self important college kid trying to dupe us by telling how great he is going to make our lives.

You have a point. But hey, we all started someplace.

I prefer to take a little more positive approach. You never know, one of this group students might come up with a solution that can benefit us all - if and when it comes to market. A nudge in the right direction from any of us could be the creative spark needed to make it happen.

Thanks you for your positive outlook on our project, It is appreciated more than you know!

[flightco]

"and your negative approach to me does nothing but inspire me to do an even better job to prove doubters like yourself wrong."

Excellent...

[jniemeie]

Glad you think so. Thanks for your interesting form of motivation.

[flightco]

Glad you think so. Thanks for your interesting form of motivation.

My pleasure.

[BlackSpinner]

We identify ourselves, state we are designing a prototype, and give a simplified statement of our reasons for developing such a prototype.

I am sorry that you have such a negative outlook on the work of students. Perhaps you have been harassed before by individuals who were not taking it as seriously or putting so much heart into it as I am. If anything, just try to remember that what you say does have an effect on people, and your negative approach to me does nothing but inspire me to do an even better job to prove doubters like yourself wrong.

Start by actually USING a cpap machine and mask for a month, ALL of you! There are already hundreds of masks on the market.

We get these kind of crap surveys every few months from "students of technology" I suggest you do a search of the board and actually READ the forum. There is lots of info and complaints about masks. (and lots of "student surveys")

And you had better get used to this kind of critique you bitch about because that is what the real world is about. YOU are responsible for your own reactions, not us. YOU were the one who came begging for information without doing your homework.

[Goofproof]

I am a self taught mechanic, that started with a B&S 1 1/2 horsepower and worked my way up to repair of V-16 Cylinder Diesel 2 and 4 cycle engines, on $750,000 per unit equiptment and all the running gear to make them run.

All with the ability to read and think, and a H.S. Edcutation, I was fortunate most of my teachers could earn a living in jobs they were teaching, not just book learning. Life is the Best Teacher, the trick is learning how to think and do, nothing is impossible, it just may take a little longer to do. Don't do it at all, if you aren't going to do it right.

If I was trying to make a better product.

I would find out the specs of what the product required to make it work correctly.

I would collect and try out ALL of the like units out there now. That would give me a better idea of what was being done, so I could come up with a better mousetrap so to speak. Also feedback from each item by the users, would help in seeing what was really needed to be corrected.

When enough info is complied, the fun starts.

There is also a psychological component to this treatment, some people don't have the will to do what's necessary to make the treatment work, that's why the failure rate is so high. (50%) as it exist now, even people that have been treated with some success for years, regress to this mode of thinking. Many are willing to be cut up, for the promised cure, in vain. Jim

[jniemeie]

I am a self taught mechanic, that started with a B&S 1 1/2 horsepower and worked my way up to repair of V-16 Cylinder Diesel 2 and 4 cycle engines, on $750,000 per unit equiptment and all the running gear to make them run.

All with the ability to read and think, and a H.S. Edcutation, I was fortunate most of my teachers could earn a living in jobs they were teaching, not just book learning. Life is the Best Teacher, the trick is learning how to think and do, nothing is impossible, it just may take a little longer to do. Don't do it at all, if you aren't going to do it right.

If I was trying to make a better product.

I would find out the specs of what the product required to make it work correctly.

I would collect and try out ALL of the like units out there now. That would give me a better idea of what was being done, so I could come up with a better mousetrap so to speak. Also feedback from each item by the users, would help in seeing what was really needed to be corrected.

When enough info is complied, the fun starts.

There is also a psychological component to this treatment, some people don't have the will to do what's necessary to make the treatment work, that's why the failure rate is so high. (50%) as it exist now, even people that have been treated with some success for years, regress to this mode of thinking. Many are willing to be cut up, for the promised cure, in vain. Jim

Thanks for your suggestions Jim! We will certainly try to attempt as much hands on experience as we can given our compact schedule and deadlines!

[Goofproof]

The size of the task is great, might be easier to climb Mt. Everest barefoot in winter. Jim

In the 9th grade we had to design A underwater dome city for economics class, it turned out pretty good I think they made the movie Atlantis from it, or maybe the James Bond movie, this was in 1966, many years before the movies.

[chunkyfrog]

There is a difference between practical engineers, who learn their craft by experience,
solving problems in the real world; and "book" engineers, who believe they are fully educated from taking classes.
My husband's experience with the latter contains far too many instances of engineers copying and then
claiming credit for the creativity of machinists.
If you expect to be "real" engineers, either be creative enough to do your own work,
--or share credit (and reward) with the "grunts" who you exploit.

[BlackSpinner]

And do your research and don't whine when people tell you to pull up your socks or get lost.

PM'ing with whine also sucks, baby.

[SteveGold]

Curiosity, ambition and a desire to help others are not things to be sneered at - *especially* in a student. Has he completely underestimated the challenge? Definitely. But there's a way to convey that without being mean-spirited and cynical, which are traits that shouldn't be mistaken for maturity.

I filled out the survey with some comments and hope it helps. Maybe it'll be an interesting project, maybe it'll go to market in five or ten years. Worth my time either way.

[jniemeie]

Curiosity, ambition and a desire to help others are not things to be sneered at - *especially* in a student. Has he completely underestimated the challenge? Definitely. But there's a way to convey that without being mean-spirited and cynical, which are traits that shouldn't be mistaken for maturity.

I filled out the survey with some comments and hope it helps. Maybe it'll be an interesting project, maybe it'll go to market in five or ten years. Worth my time either way.

Thank you for your support. I seem to have dug myself into a bit of a hole here on this forum. We are certainly aware that it will be quite a challenge but it is one we are going to face head on and do our best.

[jniemeie]

There is a difference between practical engineers, who learn their craft by experience,
solving problems in the real world; and "book" engineers, who believe they are fully educated from taking classes.
My husband's experience with the latter contains far too many instances of engineers copying and then
claiming credit for the creativity of machinists.
If you expect to be "real" engineers, either be creative enough to do your own work,
--or share credit (and reward) with the "grunts" who you exploit.

I'm not quite sure what you are trying to say here... Part of our project is to obtain a good voice of customer in order to help develop a concept... That is a staple of product development. Any practical engineer would know that.