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How to make an affordable 'Vein Finder', for use during venipuncture

by dbemporad on March 22, 2013

Table of Contents

How to make an affordable 'Vein Finder', for use during venipuncture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Intro: How to make an affordable 'Vein Finder', for use during venipuncture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Step 1: Required materials and tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Step 2: Cutting your PCB and enclosure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Step 3: The wiring and soldering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Step 4: Assembly and Friendly Plastics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Step 5: Test it out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Related Instructables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

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Intro: How to make an affordable 'Vein Finder', for use during venipuncture
One of the hardest parts of taking blood can be finding a suitable vein. Some patients are 'difficult sticks'; their veins are either very small, and/or deep, preventing health
professionals from finding a site easily and quickly. Repetitive needle sticks are painful for the patient and may also lower their confidence in the ability of the
phlebotomist performing the stick.

Many companies now market 'Vein Finder' products, but these products can cost over $5,000 (depending on quality and utility). That price tag is often outside the means
of smaller clinics or facilities. This is a guide intended for hobbyists and DIY problem solvers -- not staff of a large hospital looking for high-end tech to aid in routine
venipuncture.

This tool works by using near-infrared wavelength LEDs to illuminate the flesh at the site. The veins will appear as dark bands because they are more absorbent of this
spectrum of light than the surrounding flesh. It is similar in principle to holding your hand over a flashlight (something we all did as kids).

Estimated Time to Complete: 3-6 hours (depending on your plastic cutting and soldering ability)
Estimated Cost: ~15-50$ depending on shipping/availability of free samples/if you need to buy solder, spare wiring, misc.

Step 1: Required materials and tools

Tools:
Screwdriver
Soldering Iron
Rotary tool, with attachments suitable for cutting through plastic
recommended:
Safety Goggles
Respirator/dust mask
Needle Nose Pliers x2 (I found these useful)

Parts:
Blank Circuit board
Rocker Switch, On/Off (I used )
Resistors, 56 OHM, 250mW, 1% (I used ) x30
LED 3mm, 20mA, 1.9V, λ 628nm (I used ) x30
Plastic Enclosure with battery contacts and PCB screw holes (I used OKW enclosures ' Part# A9072129, with Part#s A9190002 and A0304031)
Friendly Plastic, Black/Black (I bought mine here )
Solder
Wire (less than 1' needed)
AA batteries x2

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Step 2: Cutting your PCB and enclosure
Measure your enclose and cut your PCB to a size that will fit so that you know what kind of area you are working with. When cutting the PCB be sure to wear breathing
protection as the fine dust from these boards may be harmful (with sufficient, prolonged exposure).

Cut an opening on the side of the enclosure, to fit the switch.

Cut an opening on the top of the enclosure, and then again on the bottom of the enclosure. The bottom hole should be wider, so as to allow the LEDs to peek out, while
leaving the middle open.

Cut the PCB board into a 'U' shape (almost like a tuning fork), so that the opening will align with the other two openings you made on the top and bottom of the enclosure.

If necessary, cut away some of the PCB to make room for the switch on the side.

Image Notes
1. Hole cut in PCB
2. Hole cut in top of enclosure
3. Hole cut in Enclosure, and PCB for switch
4. PCB mounting screws

Image Notes
1. Hole cut in bottom of enclosure. Compare to the hole cut in the top.

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Step 3: The wiring and soldering
The specifics of wiring will vary from project to project, but I found that staggering the LEDS by one hole per row allows them to be packed more densely. Your wiring
should resemble what I've drawn above. We see the several sets of resistor-LED pairs in parallel with each other. You need not use all 30 that I advise you to purchase --
they are just so inexpensive that it makes sense to buy extra just in case.

I've also made the mistake of not including adequate room for PCB mounting screws in my illustration. It's very important that you DO account for these before beginning
to solder.

This may sound dumb, but it's important to be careful which side you are attaching the components to -- that the side you've cut out for the switch actually line up. For
example, in the drawing, although I've shown the components as if you could see them, they are in fact facing INTO the page, and their wiring facing you, out of the page.
See the other photo of the real device to see what I mean.

Image Notes
1. Hole for top of enclosure
2. Hole for bottom of enclosure

Image Notes
1. Hole cut in PCB
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 2. Hole cut in top of enclosure
3. Hole cut in Enclosure, and PCB for switch
4. PCB mounting screws

Step 4: Assembly and Friendly Plastics

Once you've soldered all the parts to the cut board, screw the board into the enclosure, attach the wiring to the switch and solder, and attach the wiring to the battery
contacts and solder them as well. Screw the enclosure closed, and pop in some batteries. Let there be light!

But it's not ready to use yet.

If you try it on yourself, you'll notice that the sides of the LEDs emit too much light to clearly see the veins -- regardless of how narrow the LEDs' viewing angle. This is
where the miracle of Friendly Plastics come in.

You can read more about how to use them on other sites, or on the manufacture's page but the method that I used was to cut small strips and then heat them in near-
boiling water. The strips, although 'hot', have very low thermal conductivity so they will not burn your fingers. This allows you to shape the plastics around the edges of
the LEDs, so that they do not emit light into the viewing hole -- only down, into the skin.

Image Notes
1. Be sure not to cover the tops of the LEDs
2. Do not press it in so far that the LEDs will leak light through it.

Step 5: Test it out

Finished!

Now try it on the underside of your forearm; press it into your skin rather than merely hover over it. You should be able to clearly see veins as you pass by them, some
you may not have known were there.

Unfortunately it is very hard for my camera to capture the exact effect (intense, bright lighting, coming from a small area to focus on), but I've attached a blurry image
which hopefully shows some of the results -- I've drawn thin green lines through the veins I was able to see very clearly with the tool.

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