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Faculty Advisors : Dr . Lissett Bickford , Dr . Kevin Kochersberger
Many infants in developing countries are born prematurely , causing them to have numerous health problems . Medical clinics in these countries have very few resources and limited staff , therefore infants are not monitored properly and don ’ t receive the needed care .
Pediatric Ward at Domasi Rural Hospital
The Baby Pod : A Passive Infant Warming System Hamdan Alhosani , Michael Bokulic , Jared Daubenspeck , Nickolas England , Mark Healy , Ellen Hollingsworth Virginia Tech , Department of Mechanical Engineering
Domasi Rural Hospital in Malawi , Africa has voiced a need for a warming system that will reduce the risk of neonatal hypothermia .
Problem Statement :
To design , construct , and implement a passive warming system to reduce heat loss and help retain a newborn ’ s body temperature within a healthy range of 36.1 to 37.9 ° C .
Objectives :
The final device should be :
• Affordable
• Made from local resources in Malawi
• Able to maintain the infant ’ s core body temperature within a healthy range
• Easy to clean , repair , and use
Baby Sack : |
Diagram of |
Baby Pod : |
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insulation layers |
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within PVC |
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Setup of Testing – two water bottles with an external temperature of 38 ° C were used to simulate infant ’ s heat
Graduate Advisor : Ashley Taylor
Background : Design Data : Feedback from Uganda :
Baby Sack wrapped around infant will then be placed in the PVC Pod
Vinyl layer is attached in bottom of sack for minimal fluid leakage
Anti-rolling device to stabilize the pod ’ s motion while opening and closing
PVC Pod is 24 inches long with an 8 inch diameter to give the infant room to move
0.64 ” Required Insulation Thickness
Product Evaluation and Testing :
Temperature ( C )
40 39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 31 30
Body Temperature of Infant over Time
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 Time ( minutes )
Baby Pod and Sleep Sack Baby Pod Cloth No Insulation
Selected Survey Results Agree Disagree Unsure
Easy to Use
Easy to Clean Infant is Comfortable Easy to Monitor Temp
Mothers will Use
0 5 10
Prototype sent for demonstration in Uganda
Future Direction :
Acknowledgements :
said they would use the device
Compared to current warming solutions within Domasi Rural Hospital , the Baby Pod improves the ability of newborn infants to maintain a healthy body temperature . Recommendations for continued design :
• Reduce weight
• Attach anti-rolling mechanism to PVC
• Aesthetic improvement
The team would like to thank Dr . Andy Muelenaer , Jim McGill , and Humphries Gwedemule ( hospital administrator at Domasi ) for their informational assistance . A special thanks to Global Health Educators directors Drs . Mark and Judy Gustafson , as well as Raven Sullivan , who collected initial feedback from clinical staff in Magale , Uganda .
Top : A team poster presents its passive infant warming system designed for premature babies in developing countries . Above left : Ashley Taylor in Malawi with the original baby pod design . After input from a group of Ugandan mothers , the pod was given good grades for how it worked but poor marks for design , which they said looked too much like a coffin . With local input and feedback a new design was created to look more like a natural basket . Taylor is an ME graduate who is currently working on a doctoral degree in Engineering Education . She was a graduate advisor for the baby pod team . Above right : the Senior Design team that developed the baby pod : Jared Daubenspeck , Michael Bokulic , Nickolas England , Ellen Hollingsworth , Mark Healy and Hamdan Alhosani , all members of the class of 2016 .