This week I focused on making the dispensing mechanism more reliable by doing research about pill-dimension data. I looked at capsule size specification charts from LFA Capsule Fillers and Capsuline. From this, I got the standard external diameters for common capsule sizes. I also references FDA guidance on pill shape/size considerations. Using this, our team decided to design our pillbox such that the stepper motor supports a small set of discrete gate-opening positions mapped to the common capsule sizes.
Additionally, I defined the MVP app concept at the UI level so we can have the software scope directly tied to the device workflow. The app starts with a simple signup/log in page, scheduling that maps pill types to compartments and dispense times, a step by step filling guide, dose logs with a calendar view for taken vs pending and a streak feature to encourage use of the product. I also created a visual depiction of this to make the requirements concrete and reviewable. This provides a direct blueprint of how our app would look and function.
I also helped make the design proposal presentation in terms of defining our use case more deeply and then basing our user requirements based on that.
Status: on schedule. The app coding needs to begin this week to avoid falling behind. The only reason we have been holding off is because a few design details have not been finalized yet. We plan to lock these down early this week and start implementation right after.