Farm partnered with Avanos Medical, formerly Halyard Health, to design their next-generation COOLIEF* RF Advanced Generator. Cooled radiofrequency ablation–better known as Coolief–is a noninvasive procedure that relieves debilitating chronic pain using radiofrequency to target and “mute” the nerves that send pain signals from the body to the brain. This water-cooled technology requires no incision, and provides an alternative, outpatient option, for people who suffer from moderate to severe osteoarthritis pain.
With usability driving our efforts, Farm’s design and human factors team collaborated on ways to improve the generator system enclosure, physical interaction touch points, and user interface. We created architecture concepts that were easily portable while balancing technical requirements and ease of use. Our broad exploration of user interface layouts and functional organization prioritized key information at each therapy stage. The UI emphasizes only what is necessary for the user to view when interacting with the system within a 6-foot viewing distance.
The team utilized prototypes with a working display to conduct user testing and further refine the design.
User interface improvements included:
- Optimization of the dashboard to emphasize the primary workflow and achieve simplicity.
- A focus on one probe at a time to allow the user to monitor others at a high level.
- Introduced swim lanes that allowed users to control or monitor all probes on one screen.
By integrating an intuitive touch screen with independent channel controls, we were able to prevent accidental start. The ability to easily start all channels at once or one at a time and prioritize the right information at the right time, led to workflow improvements that provided flexibility, and enhanced efficiency and safety.
Cleanly designed enclosures highlighted a visually compelling UI and brought new life to the COOLIEF* RF System by giving it an approachable, yet advanced aesthetic. The real-time graphical display is easy to learn, intuitive to use, and simple to navigate.
