As of now, my team and I have completed the joint model project, the reference product assignment, a discussion post on customer needs, and a design matrix. We are moving on to our preliminary proposal. All assignments have been completed more or less in a timely manner and are productive towards the goal of this project. I am confident that we will keep working well if we continue to use exceptional communication skills.
As a team, we are planning on chipping away at the proposal until it is completed. We are doing this mainly because we have to, but also because it will help us prepare for the presentation following the deadline of our final proposal.
AACS (pronounced “Ace’s”) chose knee injuries because they are increasingly common among a variety of sports such as track, football, volleyball, basketball and many more.
The joint model was a bit difficult to create because the leg bones have unique shape and have many working parts in between them. For example, the tibia and fibula are connects by ligaments and other tissue. This was difficult to model because the way it looks in the body isn’t easy to recreate with wood, glue, and rubber bands.
Our current direction will help us in the long run of this project. The research will especially help us make a good case when the time comes. According to Cleveland Clinic, about 18 million people visit the doctor or E.R. due to knee injury. Knees injuries, according to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), are one of the most common reasons patients go to see their doctors. There are many injuries that can occur in the knee. The most common are tears in important tendons and ligaments such as a tear in your Anterior Cruciate Ligament or Meniscus. Fractures and dislocation of the knee cap are also very common.
I feel very good about our place in the project. Everything is more or less running smoothly. At first I was nervous about being team leader. I know that I know what I am doing, but I didn’t know if I would be good at keeping everyone on task and helping my group keep in a good direction. I think I am doing a pretty good job. Being a team leader isn’t so much about telling people what to do than it is being there as a consultant. So far I have not been especially stressed out but we still have a long way to go.
StarPathDesign 
I really enjoyed reading your blog! I liked how your introduction was very specific on what tasks your group has completed so far and how you are able to visualize a future in this project. I think that it is very important to be able to look ahead, especially for this DAP project. Now that we have some understanding of how this process works, it is really good to have goals to set for the future. I also liked reading about your experience in creating the joint model. I agree with you when you said, “The joint model was a bit difficult to create because the leg bones have unique shape and have many working parts in between them. ” My group also chose the knee and that is definitely true! My group also had some struggles when it came to make sure that our joint model moved accurately. We also thought with the materials we had, it was rather difficult to create something so complex. Overall your blog post was a great overview of your project. You gave a lot of information including some personal opinions. Great job!
-Krysta H. The Knee Team
Even though we are focusing on different joints I can relate to having a difficult time when it came to making the joint model because we had a lot of connecting bones, tendons, and ligaments to consider. I enjoyed reading your blog post and I like how you really reflected on everything your group has done and what you still have to get to. I also agree that at the moment it isn’t as stressful but we do have a long way to go and you really seem like you know what you’re talking about when you were describing the type of injury you are focusing on. You had a lot of good information great job!
-Zaira R. OrthoDocs
Wow, what I a great post! You made a small joke that took me a while to catch on to, but I can relate to the difficult time with building the model. My group had the hand which had so many different bones and muscles and ligaments that I wished humans only had three fingers lol. I really respect your reason in choosing the knee joint, I was wondering since you said that the knee is the most commonly injured, would you create a device for other sports besides roller derby or do you think that each device for each separate sport should be created specifically for that sport? Some other classmates told me that that would be more proactive even though there would be a lot more products made. Please share your thoughts on that, I just wanted to know if you thought that because of your joint choice.