A concept ideation framework for medical device design.

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Knowledge Management
• Ontology Engineering

Background:

• Medical device design requires interdisciplinary collaboration between medical and engineering experts.
• Effective knowledge transfer and management are crucial for innovation in medical device design.
• Existing knowledge resources are often siloed, hindering cross-domain synergy.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a unified semantic framework for medical device design.
• To facilitate knowledge capture, enrichment, and reuse across medical and engineering domains.
• To enhance conceptual design and innovation in medical technology.

Main Methods:

• Developed a semantic framework integrating a medical ontology, engineering functional models, and patent data.
• Modified and interlinked existing ontologies from medical, engineering, and patent domains.
• Implemented function-based searching and automated inter-domain reasoning capabilities.

Main Results:

• Created the Concept Ideation Framework for Medical Device Design (CIFMeDD).
• CIFMeDD enables identification of functionally similar procedures, tools, and inventions across domains.
• Demonstrated framework utility through two case studies on medical device design problems.

Conclusions:

• The developed semantic framework significantly aids conceptual design and innovation in medical devices.
• CIFMeDD facilitates knowledge reuse and cross-domain understanding for designers.
• This approach addresses challenges in interdisciplinary collaboration for medical device development.