ME450 Capstone Design and Manufacturing Experience: Fall 2015Kids In Danger is a nonprofit organization founded to protect children by making safety improvements to children’s products and furthering safety education. Team 26 was tasked with designing a portable sleeping environment, improving upon the commonly used Graco Pack ‘n’ Play collapsible crib design. In order to avoid the dangers associated with the central “V”-shape collapsing frame design used by Graco, they designed their portable sleeping environment to include sides that fold up, outward, and down to avoid contact with a child inside of the crib. Even if the crib were to become unlocked while in use, no portion of the frame would create a pinching point or suffocation point for the infant occupant. Additionally, the frame was designed to fold up to be smaller, and at least 10 pounds lighter than the Pack n Play. The four locking joints on the frame have two possible positions, fully assembled and fully disassembled. A fabric insert has been created using the fabric materials extracted from a Graco Pack ‘n’ Play and modified to fit onto the designed frame, covering any exposed metal from the inside. Instead of being suspended, the thin mattress is placed on top of the fabric insert, and is supported by the ground. All hardware and fasteners have fabric coverings and must have anti loosening devices to avoid occupant laceration, tearing of the mesh walls, or potential choking hazards. The most important design features of this frame prototype are the locking system that also allows for easy and intuitive setup, and the collapsing method and direction that ensures no hardware could fall onto the child occupant during an unexpected collapse. An obvious warning label system and setup instructions must also be provided to avoid incorrect setup and user error. The frame was tested and confirmed to abide by the ASTM 406 standard for collapsible crib strength requirements.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/117343/1/ME450-F15-Project26-FinalReport.pd
