About Li Yutong

Design sanitary pads

for disabled women

When I first saw this video, I found it both incredible and respectful.

It seemed that I had never thought about how women who have lost both hands can get through their menstrual periods and how they use sanitary pads.

This inevitable problem faced by this minority group made me have the idea of designing sanitary pads for them

 

https://b23.tv/MgouIdF

Milestones for my designing

  1. Find the pain point of disabled menstruators 
    Interview with disabled menstruators/Do the research on the internet-Before Nov.
  2. Designing Before Dec.
    Design the pads/Design the underwear/Design packaging-Before Dec.
  3. Connect the pad manufacturer 
    Communicate the feasibility and the approximate cost ;make a sample-Before Dec.
  4. Collect the feedback of my products 

    Give the sample to disabled menstruators-Before Jan.

Step1

What are the needs of my target customers (disabled women during their menstrual period)
upper limb disabilities Women
-----It is difficult to put on and tear open the packaging of sanitary napkins-----Inconvenient to carry
Visually impaired women
------can't tell the front from the back of the sanitary pad ------The sanitary pad cannot be placed in the correct position

Step2

Select materials, design plans, and test prototypes

We selected the suitable design materials for the target sanitary napkins and tested a total of 16 types of sanitary napkins. It includes 10 different surface layer materials (mesh, bamboo fiber, non-woven fabric, cotton and linen blend, mulberry silk, 100%PLA, soft cotton, non-woven fabric pile pulp, wood pulp, dual-fiber blend), 4 different absorption layers (domestic SAP, Japanese SAP, air diversion layer, flexfoam), and 2 bottom films (nano PE and composite breathable bottom film).

We finally compared and found a Japanese brand sanitary napkin with a mesh surface and an absorption layer composed of SAP from Japan. It is the best sanitary napkin in terms of absorption speed, absorption capacity and price

To address the pain points of the previous users, my solution is to attach magnets to sanitary napkins and the matching underwear products

Prototype

The magnetic design not only solves the problem that visually impaired women cannot see or distinguish the front and back of sanitary napkins, but also makes it convenient for visually impaired and upper limb disabled women to locate and stick them. It also reduces a lot of trouble for women with hand difficulties, such as tearing and pasting the packaging

Step3

Communicate with the sanitary napkin factory

I got in touch with the factory that produced our ideal sanitary napkins during the previous testing process,but unfortunately, although they were willing to make an attempt with me, the technology limited us

In nearly two decades as a designer, I’ve seen plenty of poor designs—and worked with my share of difficult clients.
But I’ve always believed that design is a bridge built on trust.
To every client who puts their trust in me: you deserve great design, and I’m always ready for the next challenge.

— Gao Yuan, Founder of NIO Design

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