Nimbus Inhaler

The development of Nimbus followed a heavily user-centered design process with a focus on creating and testing numerous iterations to arrive at a well-considered and refined outcome.  Research surrounding asthma treatment and inhalers was conducted first, bolstered by meetings with asthma educators and people with asthma. Through this research I gained a breadth of knowledge on the asthma and its treatment. Especially, this research and my own experience with asthma, helped me develop a deep understanding on people’s pain points and their nuanced frustrations with using their asthma inhalers.

Using these insights, a wide range of asthma inhaler concepts were developed and iterated through sketches and mockups, to arrive at a chosen concept. Then, the chosen concept was further refined with CAD and 3D printed prototypes to test its functionality and visual. The half a dozen prototypes developed were tested by multiple people throughout the iterative process to refine and validate the overall use process, which is a vital aspect of the design. Other aspects of development were also performed, such as physical stress testing and FEA analysis to validate the strength of components, DFM for injection moulding, and costing analysis to support the economic viability of the product.

The final Nimbus Inhaler design was presented at the Swinburne GradX showcase as a fully finished FDM printed working prototype, alongside a mockup of the Nimbus Hub educational website, accessible via a QR code on the Nimbus device.

Nimbus heavily considers the complete user experience to ensure successful implementation in peoples’ daily lives. Through the user research and testing, it was found that proper asthma treatment requires an asthma inhaler solution that is not only medically effective, but also portable and convenient to carry around, simple to use, promotes asthma education, and tackles social stigma. These interconnected factors determine how well a person uses their inhaler, and whether they use their inhaler in the first place.

The development of Nimbus has considered all these factors with its product features. These features include its integration of an inhaler and spacer into a single effective and portable device, its enjoyable and intuitive use method, and its ergonomic and visually appealing form. Nimbus also provides access to the Nimbus Hub educational webpage via a QR code on the device to support maintained proper use with instructional videos, and promote asthma awareness with educational content.

Furthermore, Nimbus is designed to be a reusable product with replaceable canisters, which is enabled by being easy to disassemble and reassemble. This also promotes easy cleaning and maintenance, prolonging product life. As a result, Nimbus reduces waste compared to traditional inhalers while being more affordable for the user.

Therefore, Nimbus has satisfied all attributes fundamental for good design. Nimbus greatly focuses on user experience and delivers on all the features required by people with asthma to achieve proper inhaler use, and also improves on existing solutions on being more environmentally considered and economically desirable. This holistic approach based on understanding all the needs and desires of users and stakeholders furthers design excellence and showcases the ability of Victoria’s professional product design to the masses.

The main issue with the existing range of asthma inhaler solutions is that certain inhaler solutions are great in some aspects but are lacking in other areas. For example, the common metered dose inhaler is very portable but has a very tricky use method that a majority of users have great difficulty performing correctly. Inversely, using a metered dose inhaler together with a spacer drastically simplifies the use method and increases its effectiveness, but compromises on portability and convenience. Other inhaler solutions follow this trend, including newer inhaler products that are both easy to use and portable, but result in much higher costs for users due to incorporating improved technology and functionalities.

With asthma treatment and its self-directed nature, the shortcomings of each inhaler option greatly discourage the user from using the inhaler in the first place. Nimbus innovates by meeting all the aspects that asthma patients desire, encouraging them to use their inhalers correctly and consistently. Nimbus’ unique innovation combines the existing simple technologies of a metered dose inhaler and a spacer into a single integrated device, becoming both medically effective and portable while maintaining a similarly affordable price point.

As a result, Nimbus is a world-first fully integrated metered dose inhaler and valved holding chamber, where the inhaler / dose emitter component is completely housed within the spacer during storage, and extend from the spacer during use. Nimbus also uniquely provides easy access to the Nimbus Hub educational website via a QR code on the device, where users can quickly access instructional videos and educational asthma-related content.

This project addresses four main user-related objectives in improving asthma treatment using inhalers: improving medical effectiveness, portability, ease of use, and reducing social stigma.

• Firstly, Nimbus’ integration of a metered dose inhaler with a valved holding chamber improves medical effectiveness by up to 50%.
• Secondly, Nimbus’ compact and telescopic all-in-one design improves portability over existing inhaler + spacer options.
• Thirdly, the incorporation of the spacer chamber, telescopic function and ergonomic features provide a simple and intuitive use method, that can be guided and maintained with the product’s included access to instructional content.
• Finally, the device’s minimal and sleek design aesthetic and access to educational asthma-related content gives users confidence and reduces social stigma surrounding asthma and inhalers.

These features come together to holistically improve the treatment of asthma, directly improving peoples’ daily life and social wellbeing. This project also strives to reduce environmental impact compared to existing inhaler options while maintaining similar affordability. Nimbus’ reusable nature introduces longer product lifetimes and less waste, and its majority polypropylene components designed for easy disassembly improves recyclability. The product’s reusability and simple componentry also ensures that Nimbus can be an affordable option for all people with asthma.

Combined with the user-related features stated prior, Nimbus aims to be a complete asthma inhaler solution that appeals to people with asthma in a multitude of ways, empowering them to achieve properly controlled asthma conditions through proper inhaler use. Through its holistic design approach and true understanding of user needs, Nimbus aims to build on and contribute to the capabilities of Victoria’s design culture in the realm of product design.