Senior Design Capstone Project: Multi-Use Laparoscopic Stapler

My capstone project focuses on improving a system for Medtronic’s Signia Stapler, where we work directly with two Medtronic engineers who guide requirements and design direction.

I serve as the CAD engineer on a team of seven, where I manage all CAD organization through a PDM system and lead design work in SOLIDWORKS, with a strong focus on design for manufacturability. I collaborate closely with our manufacturing and systems engineers to ensure our designs integrate well and can be efficiently produced.

One of the biggest challenges has been working in a fast-paced, sprint-based environment with three-week design cycles. We often have to design, prototype, and test within a very tight timeline. That and the size constraint. Since this is supposed to fit in a 12 mm trocar, we have to scale our final prototype up for feasibility when manufacturing these components.

To handle that, I’ve had to be very intentional about planning ahead, prioritizing critical design features, and quickly iterating based on feedback from both testing and our Medtronic clients. I personally contributed to the material and structural makeup of the transportation system as well as assisted and led a few test cases using DFMEA and PRS tables.

As result of my team and I’s hard work, we have been named as inventors on Medtronic’s provisional patent for the transportation system.

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