MILWAUKEE SAFETY
CG Clips
As an intern at Milwaukee Tool, you are tasked with completing a personal project during your time at the internship. I chose to take a look at ladder safety.
There are certain precautions that construction workers need to keep in mind when working on a ladder:
User needs and design targets:
The Problem
Although there are precautions put in place by OSHA and enforced by lead contractors, it is hard to rely on everyone to remember and enforce these rules while on site.
Insights
Human error is by far the leading cause of ladder accidents.
Goal
Design a product to help users maintain balance on a ladder. The product should be time efficient and nonintrusive, and work with their current ladder products.
Concept 1 was chosen in order to meet user needs: compact form, ladder integration, and nonintrusive.
I built upon this initial direction and came up with two variations.
I proceeded with variation 1. Variation 1's pros and cons outweighed variation 2.
Form
Because the product cannot hinder current workflow and must allow for movement, form was changed from a harsh chamfered cube to a rounded form, while still sticking with the Milwaukee brand language.
It is now more inviting to wear, and other objects are more likely to glide over and not get caught, since it has a rounder and slimmer form.
Proximity
In order for the CG (center of gravity) clips to work properly and only while on a ladder, the clips must know where the user is in proximity to the ladder. So proximity sensors were designed, taking inspiration from Milwaukee Tool's TICK.
Battery
Various ways to display the battery status was explored. Users need to be able to see this display at a quick glance, so designing it to be at the top of the device is most favorable.
The Solution
Center of gravity tracking belt clips and ladder proximity sensor. While on a ladder, if you change your center of balance in an unsafe manner or boundary, you will be notified with haptic feedback.
Tracking the user's center of gravity is made possible by accelerometer and altimeter technology, and artificial intelligence. The proximity sensors will wake the CG clips to start tracking once it is in close parameter of the ladder. Once the user gets off the ladder, the proximity sensor will notify the CG clips to sleep until woken again.
Beginning of workday:
End of workday:
MILWAUKEE SAFETY