Universal Anesthesia Machine

UAM

Built on the success of developing the K-O2 as Gradian’s newest product, 10XBETA was tasked with redesigning it’s flagship product: The Universal Anesthesia Machine (UAM).

Originally developed in 2011, the UAM was Gradian’s first product – an anesthesia machine designed to work in the absence of electricity and medical oxygen. The redesigned UAM incorporates new features, based on customer feedback and rigorous product testing, to now include advanced ventilation modes and monitoring.

Company
10XBeta

Year
2021-2022

Role
Director of Engineering, Project Lead

The pain points

The UAM is the flagship product of Gradian that was operating for many years in the field. during these years, there were several pain points that the field team raised for us to solve

  • Double vaporizer 

  • Unit cost

  • Design for assembly

  • Design for maintenance

  • Brand identity

Double vaporizer

Anesthesia machines utilize vaporizers to deliver precise quantities of anesthetic gases, such as isoflurane, sevoflurane, halothane, and nitrous oxide, while compensating for the effects of temperature and barometric pressure on the evaporation process. Each of these anesthetic agents possesses unique pros and cons. Physicians can mitigate the risk of side effects or patient harm by selecting and administering a specific type or combination of anesthetic gases.

However, there are inherent risks of cross-contamination between the agents, and simultaneous introduction of two agents can potentially harm the patient. To address this issue, we engineered a fully mechanical mechanism that ensures only one vaporizer can be activated at a time, thereby preventing user errors and enhancing patient safety during anesthesia administration


The revamping of the UAM commenced with gathering feedback from the field team and recording all identified challenges and pain points. This was followed by a comprehensive disassembly of the existing unit to spot areas for cost reduction and identify modifications that could be executed without incurring high expenses on tooling or substantial upfront costs.

Every aspect, including the base, chassis, and assembly, underwent a thorough redesign. We introduced an entirely new ventilator and monitor and aligned the design modifications to conform with the brand identity, ensuring consistency and brand coherence while addressing the operational challenges previously encountered

The redesign reduced unit cost by 60%

Redesign

We partnered with Canon Medical System, located in Virginia, USA, for the production of the new UAM units. They are in the process of assembling hundreds of these units, which are slated for operation in numerous medical facilities across Africa and East Asia.

Collaboration with Canon medical