Product Summary
The Design Process
Product Design
Market Research
Financial Data
Future Plans
References
Mission statement: to invent a device to assist in identification of distressed swimmers, mainly children, in swimming pools.
Drowning is the second leading cause of death for children under the age of 15. In 1998, there were 551 deaths due to drowning and other water- related activities. 21% of the drowning occurred in swimming pools, and many of them were preventable (Life Saving Society, 2002). In many cases drowning occurred silently and it was difficult to locate young, distressed swimmers in pool water. In some cases drowning children were even mistaken for articles of clothing at the bottom of pools. These startling statistics and facts caused the blue design team to pursue a solution to the problem of location of distressed swimmers in the age range of fifteen and under in supervised pools.
The DeepBlink™ water safety belt provides better protection to all swimmers regardless of their swimming ability. Its main area of use will be local swimming pools, but the belt may also be used in other supervised bodies of water. For this reason, the DeepBlink™ has applications to a wide range of the population. The safety belt will be sold chiefly to the parents of young children; it is to be marketed through the World Wide Web and mail order in both Canada and the U.S. In addition, the product will potentially be available for use by children at local swimming pools.
The DeepBlink™ safety belt will be manufactured by two teams of four, working four hours per day. The product will then be sold for a retail price of $29.99. It is aimed to be purchased by parents, teachers, and relatives involved with young children. After seven months of operation, it is projected that the DeepBlink™ manufacturer will begin to profit.
Product Illustration
DeepBlink™ is a safety device designed to alert pool supervisors of distressed swimmers. It works towards achieving quicker rescue for struggling swimmers. DeepBlink™ is a portable device which consists of a lightweight and adjustable safety belt outfitted with lights that flash continuously when activated. This flexible belt made of nylon webbing is comfortable and will not hinder the child’s movement or ability to swim. DeepBlink™ has four clusters of five super- red LEDs (light emitting diodes) at various points along the belt to ensure that the bright red lights are visible from all angles. Reflective Mylar is also used along the length of the belt to enhance the brightness of the flashing red LEDs.
DeepBlink™ has an easy operating mechanism. To activate the belt, the child pulls a rip cord and the belt will start to flash. The flashing bright red lights on the belt will help grab the attention of bystanders and therefore increasing the chances of the distressed swimmer to be quickly noticed and rescued. The lights are not easily deactivated, as the ripcord must be manually rewound into the starting position once it has been pulled out. This will ensure the continuity of the flash until the child has been rescued. DeepBlink™ is meant to be used for the children under the age of fifteen years, and is intended to be worn in both public and private pools. The belt has been tested and is highly visible in clear and even murky water.
DeepBlink™, although powered electrically, is safe for use in water. It makes use of tiny light emitting diodes, the components of which have an average life span of about 100,000 hours. The LEDs are also virtually unbreakable since they are made of a high strength optical grade resin which makes them perfect for temperature extremes and collisions with the pool deck. These energy-efficient light emitting diodes also emit very little heat. They have low voltage, no fumes, no hot filament and produce light of an excellent quality. (Wavicle Ltd., 2002 - 2003) The LEDs in DeepBlink™ run on a nine volt battery at an extremely low voltage. There is therefore no threat of being electrocuted. Furthermore, the outer waterproofing layer of DeepBlink™ prevents water from coming in contact with the electrical circuitry of the device.
Future plans:
Instead of a triggering mechanism, we are looking to use some kind of automatic sensor that can only be triggered in water of certain depths or at certain heart rates, to prevent accidental triggering in non-dangerous conditions. In addition we hope to expand the scope of the product so that it can have applications beyond the swimming pool. Perhaps the parent would have a complementary wrist band that receives a signal when the child is in distress when swimming.