Boston Scientific Guidewire
Boston Scientific Guidewire
The majority of my time at Boston Scientific was spent working on the development of a new guidewire product for ERCP procedures. Due to the NDA I signed, I am not allowed to discuss the project with great detail. The images above depict a similar, released BSC product for reference.
The new guidewire project was specific to one region, which created many unique user needs due to the physicians having region-specific techniques. Much of my time spent on the project took the form of running test methods, analyzing the data, and interpreting it in the technical report. In this way, I developed a more holistic understanding of how and why testing is performed and how the data informs future project decisions.
One of my main focuses was the adaptation and improvement of a lubricity test method. The lubricity characteristic of a guidewire strongly affects the usability and compatibility of the device, and therefore is an important metric to consider. I employed SolidWorks skills to improve the testing fixture and drafted a test method procedure. I worked carefully to ensure that the procedure was effective, accurate, efficient, repeatable, and easy to understand.
To complete this assignment, I had to think critically about the relevant physics and attributes captured by the data and how to tailor them to our project. I learned a lot about how test methods are generated, as well as how the data is examined later on.
While adapting the lubricity test method discussed above, I realized it was necessary to improve the usability of the fixture. Loading samples into the fixture was inefficient and introduced a lot of variation. I thought of many different possible ways to improve the fixture, and I created a few iterations of the fixture before settling on the final design.
While improving the lubricity fixture, I built upon my SolidWorks and tooling skills. I grew my design skills immensely by thinking of a design in my head, translating it to CAD, and finally working with the physical object to complete the fixture.
In summary, I was able to gain a great deal of testing experience through this work effort. While building confidence in the lab, I was also able to see and understand how the testing and data fit into the larger picture of the project goals.