Med Tech
HTIF
Point of Care Health Technologies
MedTech Node
Project Leads: Dr. Siamak Arzanpour and Dr. Edward Park
Position: Professors
Department(s): Mechatronics Systems Engineering
Institution: Simon Fraser University
Project Title
Developing Advanced Mobility Systems for Assisting People with Motion Disability
Research Summary
Human locomotion can be influenced by several factors such as neuromuscular and joint disorders which affect the functionality of joints and can cause partial or complete paralysis. Reduced mobility is estimated to affect over 1.5 million in the United States. Many individuals require mobility assistive technologies to keep up with their daily life and the demand for those devices increases with age. A wearable exoskeleton robot is an external structural mechanism with joints and links corresponding to those of a human body and synchronized with its motion to enhance or support natural body movements. The exoskeleton transmits torques from its actuators through rigid exoskeletal links to the human joints and thereby augments human strength. Our main interest lies in using such a system as an assistive robotic system, which could help people who suffer from a variety of neuromuscular diseases by leveraging their available power to better conduct the activities of daily living.
To read more...
RapidTech
Point of Care Health Technologies
MedTech Node
Project Leads: Dr. Stephen Robinovitch and Dr. Carolyn Sparrey
Position: Professor
Department(s): Biomechanical Physiology and Kinesiology, Engineering Science
Institution: Simon Fraser University
Project Title
Design of an articulated dummy for simulating realistic falls in humans
Research Summary
Falls are a major cause of injury across the lifespan, and cause over 95% of hip fractures and 60% of traumatic brain injuries in older adults. Strategies to prevent fall-related injuries include wearable protective gear and compliant ground surfaces. A barrier to the design and evaluation of these interventions is lack of mechanical testing systems that accurately mimic the complex motions of the body during a fall, and the corresponding forces applied to the body during impact. In the proposed project, we will develop an articulated dummy for realistically simulating falls in humans. The dummy will fall in a manner that accurately matches the measured kinematics of human falls, and will possess simulated soft tissue coverings that mimic the dynamic compressive properties of key impact sites.
SCI Research
Point of Care Health Technologies
Med Tech Node
Project Lead: Dr. Carolyn Sparrey
Position: Professor
Department(s): Mechatronic Systems Engineering
Institution: Simon Fraser University
Project Title
Developing quantitative algorithms for improving MRI-based diagnosis of spinal cord injury and disease
Research Summary
Patients with cervical spine degeneration are difficult to diagnose and treat. Some patients will not benefit from surgical intervention while others require immediate surgical management to avoid permanent neurological deficits. Distinguishing between these patient groups is very difficult, and not effectively done with current protocols. Medical imaging is part of the current diagnostic protocol for these patients but the interpretation of the images and their contribution to patient diagnosis is unreliable and not consistent across radiologists or even for the same radiologist on a different day. Advances in image analysis and computer power now allow for three dimensional reconstructions of medical images and will facilitate the development of novel measures of spinal cord compression. This work proposes to use new methods and software to analyze the patient's compressed spinal cord with three dimensional measures based on mechanical theories of failure.
To read more...