Development of a flexible stand to position a microwave transmitter : A complimentary tool to test equipment for breast cancer research

• Main Authors: Bojnell, Kim, Feltendal, Mattias
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: Mälardalens högskola, Akademin för innovation, design och teknik 2021
• Subjects: Breast tissue imaging; Positioning; Transmitter; Microwave; Product development; Flexibility; Mechanical Engineering; Maskinteknik
• Online Access: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:mdh:diva-55146

Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer among women, this type of cancer is diagnosed in around 9000 women every year in Sweden. The most common studies to find breast cancer is through mammography where the breast tissue is compressed and exposed by radiation. Not only does the technique expose the breast tissue for radiation, but it can also be very uncomfortable. There is research on a new kind of scanning where use of microwaves reduces the uncomfortable situation. The MDH research team that are working with this technology needs help to position a transmitter of microwaves to test their equipment. The purpose of this paper is to discover a way to mechanically position a transmitter so that it can be moved along a breast model. The investigation will be made through a product development process in order to review the research question: RQ: “How can a product be designed to position and adjust a microwave transmitter to various locations in order to help testing of cancer research equipment?” By using an agile working methodology in combination with a Design thinking process this thesis includes several sprints that involved continues improvement and feedback from the research team. The first sprint was mostly to discover and experiment on new design ideas as well as control if any of them could work. It resulted in need of measurement changes and redesigning. The second sprint involved measurement corrections. The model itself had the reasonable measurements and the functions worked as expected. However, some of the functions needed to be improved as well as a problem with clearing of the wires to the transmitter itself. The third sprint included changes where more freedom was given and more clearance was made for the wires, but this design turned out to be unpredictable. The fourth sprint included a completely new design to stabilizing the prototype as a result from the researchers’ feedback. To answer the research question, the final design resulted in a 3D printed stand designed to move the transmitter along x-axis as well as rotate around y-axis to adjust to different breast diameters and forms. The stand also includes a rack and pinion design that makes it possible to adjust to different breast lengths. Lastly, the stand makes it possible to gradually move the transmitter around the breast model. However, the final design does not only answer the research question it also fulfils stability and functionality requirements set by the research team. This clarifies why the first iterations needed redesigning. Therefore, the stand is ready for preliminary tests of the researcher’s equipment. To conclude, there are many different design solutions that can answer the research question. However, the design requires stability which reduce the number of design solutions.