The BioImagene iScan
Cutting-Edge Digital Research Diagnostics System
The BioImagene iScan is a bench-top automated pathology system that scans (digitally photographs) up to 160 one-inch by three-inch glass slides and then runs BioImagene's proprietary image analysis/storage/collaboration software to identify and quantify pathology lab samples. The iScan provides a more efficient alternative to manual microscope slide analysis.
IDE's Past Success Brings a New Project
IDE received a call from Greg Loney, the recently appointed Vice President of Instrumentation at BioImagene. Greg had successfully employed
IDE's design and engineering services at his previous company, Intuity Medical, and now he asked us to work on the iScan unit for his new company.
The Show Model Design
The first assignment was to create the industrial design for the iScan enclosure, an endeavor that included a solution for loading and removing
the slides from the enclosure. Once this was done we were to fabricate a working show unit of the enclosure to be installed and demonstrated at
a trade show within six weeks of starting the project.
For the industrial design, the IDE design team took inspiration from the world of architecture and came up with several concepts to present to BioImagene. After reviewing all the concepts, BioImagene and IDE settled on a design that incorporated a double pivoting door for ingress and egress of the internal slide rack. The double door design would use less space, an important detail on normally-crowded laboratory bench tops and it would provide ample space for the user's hand when inserting or removing slides. Vertical grooves were designed into the front panel, thus reducing the visual mass of the enclosure. The enclosure design also included the BioImagene logo embossed into the molded plastic, thus making the logo an integral part of the unit. Next, IDE's industrial design and mechanical engineering teams worked in parallel to create a 3D solids model database of the enclosure assembly and the door mechanism, all the while interfacing with BioImagene's engineers who were completing the design of the internal chassis and stage mechanisms.
The IDE model and prototype manufacturing facility then fabricated a fully functional enclosure assembly using CNC-machined ABS plastics and aluminum
components. This working enclosure was brought to BioImagene, where it was assembled to the chassis and tested by the IDE design team. Finally, it
was shipped to the trade show, where the iScan was introduced at BioImagene's Digital Pathology workshop, with 70 people participating. The exciting
product and design generated a record number of leads for the company.
The Production Design
With the success of the iScan model at the trade show, IDE's next task was to turn the initial design into a manufacturable design that met both
the manufacturing schedule and budget. To accomplish this, the IDE design team set about fully engineering the production version of the enclosure
assembly. This production enclosure would be manufactured from a combination of RIM molded parts and formed sheet metal. Once this production
design was completed, IDE provided BioImagene five sets of production prototype enclosures all made from the completed production design database
and drawings. The molded parts for these enclosures again were produced in our prototype shop using CNC-machined ABS plastic. The sheet metal work
was sub-contracted to a specialty sheet metal shop and IDE development partner in Manteca, California.
When the five production prototype enclosures were delivered to BioImagene, IDE worked with them to debug the design, and then made final updates to the design database and drawings for release to the production RIM manufacturer and sheet metal supplier.
Once the design was finalized, IDE helped BioImagene identify potential vendors for the production parts, sending out RFQs, reviewing those quotes and recommending suppliers for both the molded plastics and the sheet metal parts. With the suppliers selected and on board, IDE provided manufacturing support to them throughout the tooling and initial manufacturing run.
Another Design Request
With the successful completion of the enclosure design project, BioImagene came back to IDE with a request to redesign the iScan removable slide rack
(the removable device that holds up to 160 glass slides) and slide rack holder, an integral part of the internal slide handling mechanism. The original
slide rack had been designed by another engineering team, but the company wasn't completely satisfied with the design. The IDE team created a new
ergonomic concept for the slide rack and devised a new method for installing, holding and removing the rack. The redesign of the slide rack and holder
allowed us integrate the door opening features developed during the design of the enclosure. Improvements we made to the slide rack mechanism included
ergonomic grip details with localized rubber-like surfaces and integrated feet to improve slide stability, making it easier for the user/technician to
pick up the rack from the bench-top work surface. As a final touch, we again included the BioImagene logo, this time embossed into the molded rubber
grip on the slide rack, adding a visual tie-in with the enclosure assembly.
As part of the redesign of the slide rack, IDE's model and prototyping shop manufactured multiple models for BioImagene's review and evaluation. Once the redesign was approved, IDE manufactured an initial run of eight production slide rack assemblies.
Success Where it Counts
Since its introduction, the iScan has become an essential component of the BioImagene product line. It is fast becoming a significant part of the
automated digital pathology research world, leading to increases in productivity, accuracy and efficiency.
