Modeling of a controlled flow cup for improved transitional drinking development in children.

Introduction: Clinical observations of children with swallowing disorders using a traditional "sippy" or transitional drinking cup identified a need for a novel cup. Children with swallowing disorders are often unable to initiate the forces required to activate the cup and/or maintain suction pressure. Furthermore, fast flow rates can result in choking.

Methods: A new cup design tool is proposed using fluid-cup interactions to capture the changing geometry of the fluid during drinking. A Petri net formulation is integrated with standard fluid flow principles. A new parametric cup simulation provides visualization and direct implementation for microcontroller prototypes. A vent-based controller is developed and modeled for a novel transitional drinking cup design. A simulated pouring study is performed for water and a baseline liquid volume of 200 ml in the cup. The study varies rotation rates, initial volume, system control and desired flow rates.

Results: Volumetric flow rate curves over time are generated and compared in relation to a target flow rate. The simulation results show expected behavior for variations in cup parameters.

Conclusion: The new simulation model facilitates future dysphagia research through rapid prototyping by tuning cup geometry, liquid parameters and control signals to meet the varying needs of the users.