Implementation of a User-oriented Model for Collaborative Product Development: An Example from the Medical-equipment Industry

Abstract

In this study, we summarize the requirements for collaborative product development based on our investigation of the differences in the resources and tools that are needed for the various stages of collaborative product development and the needs of system users during these various stages. We developed a user-oriented model of collaborative product development for medical equipment and designed an interface module with the required functionalities to satisfy different areas according to their roles and workflow. In medical-equipment development, the issues related to marketing, design, and manufacturing must be considered; more importantly, the relevant regulatory needs must be thoroughly understood. Therefore, based on the unique features of the medical-equipment industry and the requirements for product development therein, we implemented a development system for collaborative product development in the intelligent medical-equipment industry, including a calendar function module, an announcements module, a knowledge-based information system, a project management system, a project operation and maintenance system, a file management system, an accessibility system, and a clinical test system. In addition, the results obtained with this system were verified with the following three possible cases: project operation and maintenance, clinical trial application, and medical equipment testing. The platform we developed can drastically simplify the original complex and dispersed process of product development for intelligent medical equipment, thereby allowing the project team to develop new medical-equipment products and promote interactions among the research and development staff, clinical specialists, and the test participants successfully, thereby resulting in a user-oriented collaborative product development process.