We are the Knee Team. Our team members consist of Krysta Herrera, the team leader and solver, Rinda Gray, the completer/finisher, Keira Neal, the shaper, and Cindy Mondragon, the team worker.
Last semester we think our team, KKRC did a very good job with communicating to one another face to face and having a mutual understanding of what was expected of each individual. We also agree however that we could have done a better job of scheduling to meet each other outside of class and spending more time completing individual work at home. We agree we work well as a group, but we sometimes find it difficult to proceed to work outside of the classroom. This semester we want to improve on outside communication as well as using each other as motivation for the months ahead. We plan to improve by texting and emailing each other more frequently to have a better understanding of our progress as a team. This will include information such as what we still need to do for the the project, who will do what part, and how we will get the work done effectively. And because we get along so well, we plan to use that to our advantage and encourage one another more often.
Our first choice joint description is the knee and it’s joint type is the hinge. The knee is the joint of the leg that allows for movement between the femur and tibia. It is protected by the patella. The reason our group is interested in the knee is because there are a number of ways this joint can be injured. Many people can injure their knee in sports such as running, basketball or football as well as simply participating in everyday activities that require strenuous movement or exercise. Because of this, our group feels that there are a number of opportunities for solutions. One of our goals for this DAP project is to together create a creative and innovative design that exceeds the one of last year. We believe that by choosing a joint that is a common place for injury, it would be interesting to see how we come up with a design that benefits all people in different scenarios.
Some examples of existing knee devices:
- Neo G is a brand that has released a number of knee supports such as the Airflow Knee Support, Angora and Wool Knee Warmer and Patella Band that are designed to support people with pain, swelling, stiffness or instability in the knee.
- Knee pad serving as a cushioning and protective device is a device that is designed as knee pads which serve as a cushioning and protective device for the knee and lower leg.
- Knee joint protector is designed to be used by athletes and includes protecting pads arranged to engage opposite sides of the leg at the knee joint and protect the wearer against injuries to the cartilage in the knee.
Our second choice joint description is the shoulder which joint type is the ball and socket. The shoulders articulating bones are the scapula and humerus. The reason the shoulder is our second choice is because we are interested to find out how people obtain injuries in the shoulder. We want to know how common are shoulder injuries outside of sports such as baseball.
Over the course of this project, our goal that we will accomplish will involve designing a working prototype of a joint protection device for a specific customer. Throughout the course of the year The Knee Team plans to first conduct thick amount of research on the joint. We will begin the earlier stages of our investigation by concluding customer interviews and basic research on the anatomy of our joint. Later on we will then begin to brainstorm possible solutions for our problem and start designing a prototype. After we after we feel comfortable with the logistics of our design we will begin to market our products and began formal testing. In the final stages of this project The Knee Team will create a formal presentation and present our design that includes all of our work thus far in an organized manner to a panel of judges. The Knee Team requests that we continue our DAP project on our first selection joint, the knee.
StarPathDesign 
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