Micron
80% of the population suffers from lower back pain at some point in their lives. While there are many treatment options available, traction machines are one of the most effective solutions available directly to the consumer. Unfortunately many of these can be uncomfortable and even dangerous. Micron Solutions developed an alternative solution and asked for our help to create an understandable and approachable design.
Micron provided my classmates and I with their original prototype and asked us to help them design a more user friendly experience. The user puts on a waist harness and clips into the device, raises his/her legs and rests them on the variable height platform, lifts their lower back and pulls the straps to remove slack. Our first step in helping with the design was to understand the human factors behind the device.
We took Micron’s original prototype and began running usability tests. We recorded the process of people interacting with the product and looked for pain points. This led us to discover opportunities to improve on features and add new ones.
As a team of four, we divided the various features and began to ideate. We began with simple sketches and moved on to 3D models.
The solution that I presented to the client featured an all-inclusive casing with a handle. The traction device could fold into itself to create a single, functional package. I also redesigned the buttons to use a simple push interaction rather than the complicated pins in the original design. The three distinct colors in the design are each associated with a different kind of interaction to help the user better understand and relate to the product.
