A clever group of young entrepreneurs trained at MIT developed a therapeutic system for middle age women dealing with hot flashes. The solution is a thermal cycling unit connected to a cooling pad that recycles water to keep the user comfortable during the night. TOOL was tasked with designing and engineering the complex base unit that had to house a water reservoir, and a thermoelectric cooler, a heat sync, a pcb, and a fan of course. For ID, this involved creating an elegant form factor that fit in with modern decor. The device exterior required venting, a hose interface, a few buttons, and a fill port.
The design started with a few configurations of the internal components. Those configs drove the form proportions. Some decisions were made at this stage based on the location the device would be living in - under the bed or on a bedside table. The Amira team thought it would be more desirable to position the base unit under the table or bed to keep the surfaces free for the wrist band which was being developed at another firm. Still an interesting decision to split up the design between two firms, but invited a unique challenge to coordinate and match the design language.
The buttons are cleverly positioned along the top edge of the device so that it can be pushed under the bed or table but still remain accessible. The water reservoir cap is easy to open by the push of a button in the center. It flips up with a spring and seals back up just as easy.
Designed in 2022
Project currently in manufacturing.