9000 Full Face Mask Named OH&S 2012 Product of the Year

Occupational, Health, and Safety Magazine has announced that the 9000 Full Face Respirator Mask has won the OH&S 2012 New Product of the Year Award. The OH&S press release reads as follows:

February 3, 2012; Culver City, CA
Congratulations on Moldex-Metric's 9000 Reusable Full Face Respirator winning the OH&S 2011 New Product of the Year award!

Technologically advanced features position the 9000 full face respirator as the leader in its field. The exclusive over-molded lens design eliminates the usual heavy clamping metal frame to create an innovative full face with lighter weight, fewer parts, greater field of vision and minimal maintenance. The 9000 is also completely free of metal parts and completely PVC-free.

The 9000 full face mask respirator and 7000 half mask respirator share a full line of cartridges and filters. Workers will appreciate the ultra-lightweight comfort. The stand away head harness with extra wide opening makes putting on and taking off quick and easy. Strap buckles are securely molded directly to the facepiece for rugged use and ease of adjustment. Lens is coated for scratch resistance.

All this at an economical price. The 9000 series adds up to simple, comfortable and economical respiratory protection that is just plain easy to wear. The OH&S editorial team will be distributing physical awards to the winners during the National Safety Council Congress & Expo in Philadelphia. We will be featuring editorial coverage of the winning products in the December issue of OH&S magazine. In addition, the winners are highlighted on the OH&S website at:
http://ohsonline.1105cms01.com/pages/2011-npoy-winners.aspx

My Dive with Jacques Cousteau: Advice to a Designer

It was in the spring of 1997 that I had the honor to dive with Jacques Cousteau. After three years of promises that he would join one of our test dives to Catalina Island, we received confirmation that Cousteau would dive with our team.
For a scuba diver, this was the opportunity of a lifetime. For a designer, this was an opportunity to meet the man that had invented the sport of scuba.
Although Cousteau had founded U.S. Divers, by 1997 he was no longer taking part in its day to day business. He did however still take part in many diving related activities with the company. Among these was the occasional dive with the U.S. Divers test dive team.

On this spring day, we set off from our usual port in Huntington Beach, California. U.S Divers always chartered a small dive boat for its test dives, and this dive was no different.
Joining us on the dive along with Captain Cousteau (at U.S. Divers, we always referred to him as "The Captain"), were his son Jean-Micheal along with Dominique Sumian. Sumian had sailed with the Calypso, and had recently become a member of the U.S. Divers sales team.

By the time we dropped anchor at Ship Rock, we had already donned our wet suits, prepped our regulators, and were preparing for our first dive. Cousteau still dove with a double hose Aqua-Lung, with the second stage mounted on the chest (as opposed to a tank mount). He still held his original invention close to his heart. We spent the next 2 hours diving Ship Rock, then moved on to Bird Rock some distance away.
It was on the return trip to Huntington Beach, that I had the chance to talk with The Captain. The boat trip back from any day dive is always a time to reflect and talk about the day's diving. You are tired, and still in of awe of what you have just seen and experienced.
I asked Cousteau what he thought of the gear we were testing that day, and what he thought about the future of diving gear. He thought for a few moments and pointed to the ocean.
"You see the ocean?" he said, with his French accent. "Diving equipment should reflect the design of the sea's creatures, smooth and purposeful. And it should enable man to swim like the fishes with as little effort as possible."

In those few words, he summarized the essence of scuba design, and in part of industrial design as well.
Jacques Cousteau died later that year, but his design advice is still with me. I suppose I could say, there's a little bit of Jacques Cousteau in everything I design.

Designer Immersion: The Advantages of Designer as User

Industrial design methodology has always dictated that industrial designer's "get to know" or "understand" their users. The premise is that the better the industrial designer understands the user's wants, needs, desires, and behaviors, the better the product design will reflect these attributes and meet (or exceed) the user's expectations.

This statement is of course true, but traditional methods of "getting to know" and "understanding" the user can be limiting, and may result in incomplete or slanted user information. Examples of these methods include user observation, user testing, user scenario analysis (including knowledge of where, when, and how the product will be used).

What is limiting or missing from these traditional methods? It is the desirable ability to "get inside the head" of the user. Traditional methods work primarily from the "outside" or by means of observation. While the results of observation are vital, they are only part of the picture. But how can industrial designer's truly "get inside the head" of the user?

The only way for a designer to "get inside the head" of a user, is to become a user. Only by thinking and acting as users themselves, can designers complete their understanding of the user's wants, needs, desires, and behaviors.

I've coined the phrase "Designer Immersion" to describe this process. Designer Immersion implies that the designer completely immerses themselves into the role of the user. Designer and user essentially become one.

What are the advantages of using Designer Immersion compared with the use of traditional user observational methods alone?

First, industrial designers can verify (or refute) from first hand experience, any or all of the user observational information gathered. Designer Immersion is therefore a key verification tool.

Second, through first hand experience, designers can make subtle observations in: product behavior, environmental conditions, user tasking, or product fit that can drive design, and would otherwise be missed.

Third, Designer Immersion can help designers develop a higher level of user "empathy" that can heighten their concern for the well being and success of the end user. By experiencing product use, as well as product risk and consequence of misuse first hand, designers are in a unique position to support design concerns that include appearance, comfort, fit, tasking, and safety.

And when you really think about it, as a customer would you want to use a product that was not designed by a user of that product? Would you want to dive with dive equipment not designed by a diver? Would you wear a respiratory mask that was not designed by a mask user? Would you want to use a medical device not designed by someone intimately involved in the first hand use of that device?

As users and customers have come to expect this relationship between their products and the designers of their products, Designer Immersion can effectively be described as an essential and necessary user requirement.

Achieving the Perfect Fit: Scuba and Respiratory Mask Design

For the consumer or "end user" of a "body worn" consumer product, a perfect fit is essential. For users of scuba and respiratory protection masks, a perfect fit can mean the difference between life and death. What is meant by "a perfect fit"? And how can the mask designer ensure this?

First, scuba masks and respiratory protection masks require a perfect seal between the face seal (or skirt) and the face to prevent entry of water or unwanted agents. This is accomplished by the mask designer taking into account the facial characteristics of the end user population and ensuring the mask face seal (or skirt) is sufficiently compliant (flexible) to allow for variations in facial size and feature.

Second, scuba masks and respiratory masks must be comfortable against the face when they are properly sealed. If excessive and uncomfortable force is needed to achieve a proper seal, users may loosen their mask to achieve comfort, and as a result compromise the integrity of the seal. Mask designers must also design-in a sufficient amount of compliance between the face seal (or skirt) and the face to ensure a wide enough "comfort zone". This refers to a range of mask tightness that is comfortable and easily attainable.

Third, the geometry and cross section of the face seal (or skirt) is critical to achieving proper pressure against the face, and to achieve proper comfort. This includes proper choice of wall thickness and variation of wall thickness where needed.

Forth, the proper material must be chosen for the face seal (or skirt). The mask designer has a range of options that include, but are not limited to: silicone (the most hypo-allergenic to avoid skin reaction), TPE (thermal plastic elastomer) and butyl or nitrile rubber. The durometer or hardness of the material must be taken into account as well, in order to ensure proper compliance, comfort, and durability.

Fifth, the mask designer must ensure that the manufacturing process of the mask is properly monitored. This is to ensure that the design intent and intended behavior of the mask is maintained. Improper molding processes can result in a face seal (or skirt) that does not match the 3D CAD file, and does not meet the durometer expectations.

Sixth and finally, the mask designer must ensure that the mask is properly tested by a representative population of users. This can mean pool and ocean testing for scuba masks, and fit testing for respiratory protection masks.

The scuba and respiratory protection mask designer must take all of these factors into account, to ensure "a perfect fit". And yet, as a customer or "end user" you should not notice any of these efforts. The mask designer's responsibility is to make these factors transparent to you, so that you can enjoy the use of your scuba or respiratory protection mask, whether you're scuba diving in the Bahamas or performing your job in a hazardous environment.