Mohamed Najib Salleh

Customised Pressure Garment Development by Using 3D Scanned Body Image

The objective of this research is to develop a method for designing customised pressure garments that can be more accurately applied to a burn wound area. The method includes the use of a 3D digital image of the wounded body part obtained by a body scanner and the development of a 3D pressure garment model and a 2D pattern. The scanned data contain detailed information that cannot be feasibly obtained by manual measurements, such as body curvature. The model parameters include the pressure to be exerted, pressure garment fabric properties and radius of curvature of the cross-sections of scanned body parts. By using a 3D pressure garment model, a 2D garment pattern is developed, and then, a pressure garment is constructed by using the pattern. The technique has been experimentally verified and customised pressure garments are made for a number of volunteer subjects. The customised pressure garments made for the subjects exert pressures close to the design pressure, but vary along the circumference of a given cross-section. The customised pressure garments constructed by using the developed method have shown a more accurate fit to uniformly exert the design pressure onto the whole of the wounded area.

Total productive maintenance and manufacturing performance: Does technical complexity in the production process matter?

This paper intends to discuss some findings from a study of TPM practices in manufacturing organizations in Malaysia. Total productive maintenance (TPM), a resource-emphasized approach moves the paradigm of maintenance by putting emphasis on total employee involvement in the maintenance activities.We studied the relationship between TPM practices and manufacturing performance. We investigated the moderating effect of the level of technical complexity in the production process in the TPM practices and manufacturing performance relationships as well. Significant relationships were found between TPM practices and cost.We also found the moderating effect of technical complexity in the production process on the relationship between TPM practices and manufacturing performance.

Pressure distribution model for pressure garments and its verification

Pressure garments are tight fitting elastic garments which apply pressure to the wounded area of the human body for treatment. They prevent and control the formation of hypertrophic scars by applying counter pressure to the burn wounded area [1]. The garments are primarily designed to exert pressure on a particular part of the body.

Development of a flexible customised compression garment pattern design system

The paper highlighted a new method that can be used to construct a customised compression garment for athletes. The garment must be able to exert high pressure on the ankle and become lower towards the knee. The garment was generated using 3D data of an athlete’s body segment obtained by a non-invasive non-contact measurement system. Then, a 3D compression garment was generated using a novel modelling approach taking into account the properties of the fabric, how much pressure to be exerted and the curvature of body parts. The 3D garment model was then flattened into a 2D compression garment pattern design. Finally, an experiment was conducted to validate the system. The outcome of the research is a system that not only allows for the design of a customised compression garment, but also could be used to create a variety of compression garment that can exert different pressure.

Improvement of Corrosion Resistance of Rare Earth Element (REE)-Based Anodic Oxidation Coating on AZ91D Magnesium Alloy

Anodization is a useful technique for forming protective films on magnesium alloys and improves its corrosion resistance. Based on the rare earth metal (REE) salt solution, the optimum parameter was selected by comparing the anti-corrosion property of anodic film. The structure, component and surface morphology of anodic film and cross-section were analyzed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS). The corrosion behavior was evaluated by immersion test. In this paper, a dense anodic film approximately 20 µm thick was prepared on a AZ91D magnesium alloy through anodic oxidation coating. The results show that the anodic films were mainly composed of Mg17Al12, Mg17La2, MgO and amorphous compounds. The best corrosion resistance was obtained with specimen anodized in solution containing both lanthanum nitrate and magnesium, whose corrosion resistance is approximately 3 times higher than that of as-received AZ91D magnesium alloy.

The study of lean layout in an automotive parts manufacturer

The term “Lean” was the Japanese model and had been associated with the practice of interpreting the value added activities from those that are wasted (“muda” in Japanese) in an organization and its supply chain [1]. Apart from that, lean was also known as the focus on reducing the non value added (NVA) waste which impedes the flow of the product as it is being transformed in the value chain [2]. Lean manufacturing also means producing only to direct customer orders, creating the need for less on-hand inventory [3]. Lean layout is one of the lean manufacturing tools which have been applied in this automotive parts manufacturer. This tool encourages good visibility and management of the manufacturing system [2]. The U-shape design is incorporated in this case study in order to improve the efficiency of production. In this research, the current production layout is studied and the improvements are conducted by using U-shaped layout which replaced the traditional layout (straight line layout). The results are shown through the figures of the new layout design in the production line.

Pressure Distribution Model for Pressure Garment Development

This paper reports a pressure distribution model that will predict the pressure applied by a pressure garment onto a wounded body segment which could facilitate the production of custom made pressure garments. The model is generated by using the 3D data of the wounded body segment of a patient which are obtained by a non-intrusive non-contact measurement system. The circumference of the body segment is calculated from scanned digital data. Then, a circumference reduction factor is calculated to determine the circumference of the pressure garment in order to apply the design pressure by using a specific fabric with an experimentally determined modulus of elasticity in the circumferential direction. Then, the radius of curvature for each data point in a given layer is calculated and the pressure applied is obtained. Finally, a 3D pressure distribution model for the whole wounded part is constructed by stacking the pressure maps of adjacent layers. The model is verified through a comparison with the actual pressure measured by using custom made pressure garments and volunteer subjects. The comparison shows reasonable agreement. The model enables garment manufacturers/therapists to evaluate the effectiveness of a custom designed pressure garment before it is manufactured and eliminates the need for in-situ pressure measurements.

Pressure Generated from Head Garment with Padding Insert Used for Hypertrophic Scar Treatment

Pressure garment is a standard non-surgical treatment for hypertrophic scar caused by burn injury. However, the main problem identified was the non-uniform pressure distribution due to the complexity of the contour at the facial area. Therefore, padding was developed to produce more efficient pressure distribution. This study used 3D scanning apparatus to obtain the cross sections of the facial area. The padding was developed using 3D modeling software which act as an insert to fill the gaps at the contact area of the garment and facial areas. The result shows that by inserting the padding underneath the garment, the pressure outputs indicate an acceptable pressure range with the suitable reduction factor for the head garment fabrication.

Computer aided dual padding design for burn injury

This paper reports a computational method to develop customized dual padding to be inserted at certain body parts with double low pressure areas. The results show that both custom made paddings can be created computationally. It is hope that the method can help occupational therapists to design padding that can exert the pressure close to the specific design pressure to the whole of the affected body part, which in turn offers an advantage for the healing process and the prevention of the formation of scar tissue due to burn injury.

The influence of level of pressure in increasing the performance of an athlete for walking movement

A compression stocking is a garment that is used to enhance the performance of athlete, to prevent injury and to improve their recovery process.Although there are journal papers have discussed their effectiveness on enhancing performance [1-2], others researchers dispute the finding [3-4].[5] suggests that the level of pressure used in the experiments as the cause for the variation.This paper had investigated the different of using a graduated compression stocking (GCS) against a uniform compression stocking (UCS) for walking movement.