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Developing a Dynamic Wheelchair Using the Design Structure Matrix Method

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Tue, 2014-09-02 12:23 — Mohammed Othman
Journal Title, Volume, Page: 
Concurrent Engineering Research and Applications, 19, 235-243
Year of Publication: 
2011
Link: 
http://cer.sagepub.com/content/19/3/235
Authors: 
Mohammed Othman
Mechanical and Industrial Engineering Department, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3G 1M8
Current Affiliation: 
Industrial Engineering Department, An-Najah National University
[email protected]
Nadia Bhuiyan
Mechanical and Industrial Engineering Department, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3G 1M8
Current Affiliation: 
Mechanical and Industrial Engineering Department, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3G 1M8
[email protected]
Linghua Kong
Center for Assistive Technology & Environmental Access (CATEA), Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
Current Affiliation: 
Center for Assistive Technology & Environmental Access (CATEA), Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
[email protected]
Preferred Abstract (Original): 
Abstract: Involuntary extensor thrusts, experienced by wheelchair users with cerebral palsy, can cause injuries due to unexpected impacts
with the wheelchair. Consequently, these unexpected motions can hurt the human body, damage the wheelchair, and change the correct
position of the user’s pelvis. Many of the existing wheelchairs do not address all the needs of disabled people. The goal of this article is to
develop an instrumented, dynamic seating system for people with extensor thrust using the Design Structure Matrix (DSM) tool in order to
provide an efficient development sequence of the design tasks for three subsystems of the seat: the seat back, seat bottom, and footrest. This
article provides a detailed application of the use of the DSM. It reveals that the design process of the three main systems can be executed
concurrently with different teams having different specializations and proposes a method to minimize total design time.