Patent-based creativity method for early design stages: case study in locking systems for medical applications

Current product design processes are demanding functionality improvements, in order to make the difference in the market. This situation has led designers, engineers and specialist to work together in order to develop new methodologies that might reduce development time and support the quality in the product. In this connection, several tools and methodologies have been proposed over the last decade centred in the combination of industrial design techniques with functional engineering design. Many of these new solutions were based into the treatment of patents in order to reduce the analysis time in terms of existing solutions and how those solutions could be implemented into creation of new products. This article presents the development of a creativity method, based on combination and mutation models, that supports patent search and analysis in the early design stages. The use of this method will be portrayed into the design of the locking system of a medical device used for the treatment of the camptocormia

Mitoxantrone prior to interferon beta-1b in aggressive relapsing multiple sclerosis: a 3-year randomised trial.

OBJECTIVES: The long-term impact of interferon-beta-1b (IFN) might be improved by short-term immunosuppression with mitoxantrone (MITOX) in aggressive relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (ARMS) patients. METHODS: In this 3-year clinical and MRI study, 109 ARMS patients (two or more relapses in the previous 12 months and one or more gadolinium (Gd)-enhancing MRI lesion) were randomised into two groups: 54 patients received MITOX monthly (12 mg/m(2); maximum 20 mg) combined with 1 g of methylprednisolone (MP) for 6 months followed by IFN for the last 27 months, and 55 patients received IFN for 3 years combined with 1 g of MP monthly for the first 6 months. The primary endpoint was the time to worsen by at least one Expanded Disability Status Scale point confirmed at 3 months. RESULTS: The time to worsen by at least one Expanded Disability Status Scale point confirmed at 3 months was delayed by 18 months in the MITOX group compared with the IFN group (p<0.012). The 3-year risk of worsening disability was reduced by 65% in the MITOX group relative to the IFN group (11.8% vs 33.6%). MITOX patients had a reduced relapse rate by 61.7%, a reduced number of Gd-enhancing lesions at month 9 and a slower accumulation of new T2 lesions at each time point. CONCLUSIONS: Although there were limitations in this investigator-academic-driven study, the data do suggest that mitoxantrone induction therapy prior to INF beta-1b may have a role in aggressive disease