JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #120 - April 2018 - 50

SOLUTlONS healthcare

The Invincible
Shield, a fully
wearable composite shield that
is meant to do a
similar job to the
rib cage in protecting organs

we did not have a solution in mind.
And that was a benefit because it
gave the whole team the freedom
to explore all the issues and understand every constraint.
Our journey started with a one-toone meeting with the client. What
were their expectations and key
requirements? Our client wanted
their day-to-day experience improved, requiring it to be discreet
beneath a shirt, for instance. So,
we spent several hours creating a
detailed requirement specification
to underpin. We spent a month
alone generating and developing
ideas against the brief and that set
of constraints".

The project team comprised,
among others, mechanical
engineers, industrial designers,
and composites specialists. Like
every Applied Technologies
project, it is the collaborative
and open culture within the
company that led to new and
unique solutions. While the
team was busy developing its
initial ideas, it simultaneously
began a full 3D scan of the client
to fully understand how to create
and build a fully custom structure for them. In addition, it also
received medical images from
the client's doctor, which helped
them build up a detailed picture

of the protection required.
The initial brain-storm brought
about twenty strong ideas to the
table. The early concept designs
had determined that the final
product would need to be wearable, interfacing seamlessly with
the human body. Accordingly,
the team then consulted with
material and textile experts.
Using FDM and PolyJet, the
team transformed its CAD
designs into prototype models
using Stratsys 3D printers.
The project team began to
evolve a final design that comprised a composite chest-shield,
perfectly moulded to the client's

body, engineered to protect from
initial impact and efficiently
transfer loads to three safer
regions of the body. At these
locations, a unique gel material
interfaced with the body which
was designed to attenuate the
load and protect weak ribs and
the vital organs. From this, the
design team were able to define
a finished product.
Having undertaken computer-simulated load tests,
and armed with a thorough
understanding of all the underlying structures, The team
carried out impact testing at
Cranfield University's Impact
Center-where the crash tests
for Formula1 monocoques are
performed. The tests consists of
dropping differing masses from
varying heights directly on to the
shield What is most important is
that the solution was designed
completely around the user,
and was entirely data-led - it
delivered on every level because
the team had listened to the data
throughout. True data-driven
design.
More information:
www.mclaren.com

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jec composites magazine / N°120 April 2018
http://www.mclaren.com http://www.jeccomposites.com
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #120 - April 2018
