Engineering Tech Symposium Spring 2021
- Biomedical Engineering
- Chemical Engineering
- Civil & Environmental Engineering
- Electrical & Computer Engineering
- Mechanical Engineering
Portable IV Pump | The current medical devices used to administer fluids in emergency situations are intravenous therapy, or IV, bags. These IV bags are typically raised above body level and utilize gravitational force to allow the fluid to flow downwards. However, in emergency situations such as combat scenarios, the IV bag is not able to be efficiently elevated, thus rendering the IV bag less effective. Our team is focused on developing a lightweight, transportable, and automatic IV pump which can quickly and consistently deliver IV fluids in any scenario.
CATO Vest | Long QT syndrome (LQTS) is a rare heart disease estimated to affect at least 1 in 3,000 people and result in about 3,000 deaths within the United States each year. The syndrome can lead to tragic, unexpected death, most commonly in children. With LQTS, the heart's electrical system takes too long to recharge, due to abnormal repolarization of the ventricles. This abnormal delay in repolarization leads to a long delay between the depolarization and repolarization of the heart.
Current approaches at diagnosing LQTS involve utilizing halter monitors for recording heartrhythms, after which analysis on the data is performed. There currently is no cure for LQTS. The CATO group seeks to utilize the large surface area provided by a vest to incorporate a multi-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) which will help map the electrical rhythms of the heart. The principles at work involve the acquisition of electrical signals and development of machine learning algorithms to decipher the patient specific QT interval. This will be imperative, as each patient’s heart functions differently, and the electrical activation may be affected by diet, level of activity, environment and/or medications used. This specificity of the patient’s heart limit will determine a threshold in which the algorithm will detect an abnormal heart rhythm. The threshold will be determined based on the patient mapping done under elevated but non-adverse heart arrhythmias. With implantation into a versatile vest, CATO is on the cutting-edge of predicting and alleviating LQTS symptomology.
Ice Creeper and Knee Locking Mechanism Modifications for Prosthetic Leg | Our client, bobsleigh paralympian Sarah Fraizer-Kim, originally requested a device that would increase stability of her prosthetic leg (Ottobock X-3) while standing and/or walking on uneven icy terrains. Her current issue, which is constantly falling while on the track due to instability, occurs by her leg’s locking mechanism automatically disengaging after being inactive for some time, as well as the ice creeper attached to her leg not providing enough traction and her boot being loose on her prosthetic foot. As solutions to both sources of the issue we have designed two different components: a knee stopper and a modified ice-creeper. The knee stopper component works by being inserted onto the rear area of the Ottobock leg; due to its shape being molded to fit perfectly on that area of the leg, there is no room left for the knee area to bend; a metal pin is used to secure the component and avoid it from falling. To decrease its weight, but still have it being able to support around 300+ lbs, the main material for the stopper will be delrin. On the other hand, the modified ice creeper increases stability by providing a greater contact area with the terrain thanks to the spikes located at the bottom, front, and lateral sides of the foot, overall improving the grip the user has. To ensure a tight fit we will also add a supportive structure to the rear area and a belt mechanism around the ankle area; an inner enclosure will increase internal surface area of pylon to stabilize foot and foorwear. This project was constructed around a single client with specific needs; however, the final products were created to fulfill these needs in a generalized manner that could benefit a larger consumer pool.
View presentation by Consilio Prothesium from 10:30-11:30 am
Anaida Smart Bandage | Wound healing is categorized into four overlapping stages: hemostasis, inflammation, proliferation, and remodeling. Throughout the wound healing process, oxygenation, infection, foreign body invasion, as well as negative variation to blood supply can be disrupted delaying healing. The Anaida Smart Bandage by Dress Up is a device which combats this as it is composed of four main components within the bandage to aid in post-operative wound healing. The four main components of the smart bandage include electrical stimulation, temperature sensing, pH change sensing, and a sericin hydrogel. These components will promote the proliferation and remodeling stages of wound healing, to soothe the area, stimulate cell growth to ultimately aid in scar reduction. This device is chosen for its alternative therapy and non-pharmaceutical properties, efficiency, adaptability, cost effectiveness, safety, functionality and biocompatibility to provide healing for vulnerable patients.
JAKLD Grippe - Cable Grasping Adaptation | Eric Lindsay is a C5 quadriplegic who does not have fine motor function in his fingers and hands, he still retains limited gross motor function in his arms and wrists. He had issued a challenge to have a device created which allows him to pick up a phone charger cord and plug it into the wall. This led to the realization that a broader market for this type of device exists within patients whose pathologies include reduced finger tactility. Examples of disorders that encompass this are Parkinson's disease, arthritis, traumatic brain injury, stroke, spinal injuries, radial nerve damage, and more. Five concepts for the device were developed. These designs were compared and contrasted utilizing a House of Quality and then subsequently narrowed down to a single design after extensive risk and correlation analysis depicted by functional and customer requirements was performed. The chosen device has continued to be modified to fulfill the requirements. The final design utilizes Eric’s wrist movement which is transferred through a slide crank to a sliding plate which is attached to his index and middle finger by a nylon cord. The slide crank is the main mechanism that is translating the wrist actuation into a horizontal tension force on the nylon cord pinching the fingers. These two fingers are pulled onto the thumb which is held in place by a splint. This creates a pinching force of greater than 30 Newtons which allows Eric to pick up and manipulate cords or other small objects.