The device we chose to disassemble was a portable IV pump.
To begin disassembling this device, we first had to open the external enclosure. It was secured with Phillips-head screws, mostly made of metal — a few were plastic. A couple screws seemed inaccessible at first, but we found that the handle on the back enclosure could be removed to allow access to these screws. This led us to believe that the device was designed to opened, potentially to be taken apart and repaired. Additionally, there was a small battery compartment on the back enclosure that housed some kind of 8-cell battery.

Upon opening the device, we found several circuit boards, along with a small speaker and fan, and the IV-stepper motor unit. We removed each component by disconnecting wires and removing screws that held most of the parts in place. Most of the device was simple to disassemble. In all, we removed three circuit boards, a fan, a speaker, three displays, and a pin-based output connector. Some of these components were likely available off the shelf, such as the fan, speaker, and screens. The IV pump unit was almost certainly created specifically for this device, and some circuitry may also have been uniquely designed. Seeing the internals of the device confirmed that it is likely meant to be repaired after use, as it would be very simple to remove and replace faulty components.

The main component of the pump system was the stepper motor-pump unit. This part was intricately designed and manufactured, making it a challenging puzzle to disassemble. I can’t remember each step we took to take this component apart, but we started by removing screws on the base of the stepper motor. This didn’t release anything, so we kept looking for more screws, which we found by removing some of the plastic pieces, which were carefully designed to snap together. This component had many layers, with small plastic pieces that fit over one another. In the end, we didn’t remove every piece of the motor-pump unit, as there was a long shaft connected to the stepper motor that prevented us from removing any more pieces. This image shows the final progress we made.

 This image shows all the components we removed from the device. The device as a whole can probably be recycled, since most components are metals or plastics. If the device is disassembled, it would be easy to sort out many recyclable pieces.

This lab showed me that many devices can be comprised of a variety of components. Many can easily come from off-the-shelf parts, while others require very intricate design, unique machining, and complex assembly, such as the motor-pump unit of our IV pump.