Biomechanical Engineering Commons^™

Structure And Movement Design To Build A Functional Prosthetic Hand, John Campbell

Honors College Theses

This project aims to create a functional prosthetic hand that will improve upon the previous design for this project. The previous design included four fingers which were moved using a four-bar linkage and slider crank mechanism in combination with a linear actuator to move all four fingers in unison. Two servo motors were used to create an opposable thumb that could be used to grasp objects. Movement of the prosthetic hand was activated using a signal received from a myoelectric sensor. The goal of this project is to study this design and attempt to upgrade the prosthetic hand utilizing a …

Blood Flow Regulates Atherosclerosis Progression And Regression, Morgan A. Schake

Mechanical (and Materials) Engineering -- Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Atherosclerosis is the most prevalent pathology of cardiovascular disease with no known cure. Despite the many systemic risk factors for atherosclerosis, plaques do not form randomly in the vasculature. Instead, they form around bifurcations and the inner curvature of highly curving arterial segments that contain so-called disturbed blood flow that is low in magnitude and multidirectional over the cardiac cycle. Conversely, straight, non-bifurcated arterial segments that contain moderate-to-high and unidirectional (i.e., normal) blood flow are protected from plaque development. Thus, blood flow is a key regulator of atherosclerosis that may be able to be leveraged to develop new therapeutics. Towards …

Hybrid Fes-Exoskeleton Control: Using Mpc To Distribute Actuation For Elbow And Wrist Movements, Nathan Dunkelberger, Jeffrey Berning, Eric M. Schearer, Marcia K. O'Malley

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

Introduction: Individuals who have suffered a cervical spinal cord injury prioritize the recovery of upper limb function for completing activities of daily living. Hybrid FES-exoskeleton systems have the potential to assist this population by providing a portable, powered, and wearable device; however, realization of this combination of technologies has been challenging. In particular, it has been difficult to show generalizability across motions, and to define optimal distribution of actuation, given the complex nature of the combined dynamic system. Methods: In this paper, we present a hybrid controller using a model predictive control (MPC) formulation that combines the actuation of both …

Using Statistics, Computational Modelling And Artificial Intelligence Methods To Study And Strengthen The Link Between Kinematic Impacts And Mtbis, Andrew Luke Mcconnell Patterson

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBIs) are frequently occurring, yet poorly understood, injuries in sports (e.g., ice hockey) and other physical recreation activities where head impacts occur. Helmets are essential pieces of equipment used to protect participants’ heads from mTBIs. Evaluating the performance of helmets to prevent mTBIs using simulations on anatomically accurate computational head finite element models is critically important for advancing the development of safer helmets. Advancing the level of detail in, and access to, such models, and their continued validation through state-of-the-art brain imaging methods and traditional head injury assessment procedures, is also essential to improve safety. The …

Steam Gasification Of Biochar To Produce Hydrogen-Rich Syngas, Nnamdi Ofuani

Honors College Theses

A key greenhouse gas (GHG) emission contributing to climate change is carbon dioxide (CO₂) emission. This emission is largely due to the use of fossil fuel as a major energy source. Biomass is an alternative energy source. Biochar, a byproduct of the pyrolysis process (of biomass), could be gasified to produce syngas (a mixture of CO and H₂). This syngas can further be used to produce different kinds of fuels like biodiesel, bio-gasoline, bioethanol, etc. In the steam gasification of biochar, the quality and yield of syngas is dependent on parameters such as temperature, particle size, …

Multiscale Modeling Of Cardiac Growth And Baroreflex Control, Hossein Sharifi

Theses and Dissertations--Mechanical Engineering

The heart functions within a complex system that adapts its function to any alteration in loading via several mechanisms. For example, the baroreflex is a short-term feedback loop that modulates the heart's function on a beat-to-beat basis to control arterial pressure. On the other hand, cardiac growth is a long-term adaptive response that occurs over weeks or months in response to changes in left ventricular loading. Understanding the mechanisms that drive ventricular growth and biological remodeling is critical to improving patient care. Multiscale models of the cardiovascular system have emerged as effective tools for investigating G&R, offering the ability to …

Computational Investigations Of The Fluid-Structure Interaction During Phonation: The Role Of Vocal Fold Elasticity And Glottal Flow Unsteadiness, Xiaojian Wang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Human voice production arises from the biomechanical interaction between vocal fold vibrations and airflow dynamics. Changes in vocal fold stiffness can lead to changes in vocal fold vibration patterns and further changes in voice outcomes. A good knowledge of the cause-and-effect relationship between vocal fold stiffness and voice production can not only deepen the understanding of voice production mechanisms but also benefit the treatment of voice disorders associated with vocal fold stiffness changes. This constitutes the first objective of this dissertation. The second objective of this dissertation is to further examine the range of validity of the quasi-steady assumption of …

Better Tools For Women: Serving Local Gynecologic Cancer Patients, Caitlin Crowley

Purdue Journal of Service-Learning and International Engagement

Introduction: Cervical patients require a mirror to view anatomy between doctor visits. Existing mirrors have inadequate light and magnification, limit available free hands, or require another individual’s assistance.

Skin lesion size is tracked over time to record advances in healing or disease progression. Current options are inadequate for cutaneous lesion documentation. Parkview Cancer Institute asked me to develop a better self-examination tool for cervical patients. The new device may be used by all women for wellness checks.

Materials and Methods: A hands free illuminated cleanable mirror with magnification was designed after anthropometric and regulatory review.

Device performance was established by …

3d-Printed Piezoelectric Porous Bioactive Scaffolds And Clinical Ultrasonic Stimulation Can Help In Enhanced Bone Regeneration, Prabaha Sikder, Phaniteja Nagaraju, Harsha P.S. Naganaboyina

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

This paper presents a comprehensive effort to develop and analyze first-of-its-kind design-specific and bioactive piezoelectric scaffolds for treating orthopedic defects. The study has three major highlights. First, this is one of the first studies that utilize extrusion-based 3D printing to develop design-specific macroporous piezoelectric scaffolds for treating bone defects. The scaffolds with controlled pore size and architecture were synthesized based on unique composite formulations containing polycaprolactone (PCL) and micron-sized barium titanate (BaTiO3) particles. Second, the bioactive PCL-BaTiO3 piezoelectric composite formulations were explicitly developed in the form of uniform diameter filaments, which served as feedstock material for the fused filament fabrication …

Development Of A Two-Axis Cyclic Loading Device For Mechanical Testing Of Glenoid Component Fixation, Cintya Tavares

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The fundamental mechanism of aseptic glenoid component loosening, the rocking horse phenomenon, is a reaction to glenohumeral articular forces that are not centered on the component. While glenoid component loosening remains a problem, the underlying mechanisms that lead to fixation failure at the bone-component contact remain controversial. Several studies employing the ASTM F2028 technique have successfully recreated the rocking horse effect. However, no obvious strategy to decrease component loosening has been presented. This thesis investigates the behavior of forces that lead to component loosening on cyclically loaded components using three different protocols and testing apparatuses—a Stewart Platform, a cyclic loading …

Atherogenic Potential Of Microgravity Hemodynamics In The Carotid Bifurcation: A Numerical Investigation, Philippe Sucosky, Varun Vinayak Kalaiarasan, Graham B. Quasebarth, Patricia Strack, Jason A. Shar

Faculty Open Access Publishing Fund Collection

Long-duration spaceflight poses multiple hazards to human health, including physiological changes associated with microgravity. The hemodynamic adaptations occurring upon entry into weightlessness have been associated with retrograde stagnant flow conditions and thromboembolic events in the venous vasculature but the impact of microgravity on cerebral arterial hemodynamics and function remains poorly understood. The objective of this study was to quantify the effects of microgravity on hemodynamics and wall shear stress (WSS) characteristics in 16 carotid bifurcation geometries reconstructed from ultrasonography images using computational fluid dynamics modeling. Microgravity resulted in a significant 21% increase in flow stasis index, a 22–23% decrease in …

The Design And Evaluation Of A Subacromial Implant In Restoring Normal Glenohumeral Joint Stability In The Presence Of A Massive Irreparable Rotator Cuff Tear, Cole T. Fleet

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Massive irreparable rotator cuff tears are a common cause of pain and disability. Several different treatment options are available for this pathology; however, these treatments have been associated with poor clinical outcomes when used to treat younger (<65 years), more active patients. The purpose of this thesis was to design and evaluate a subacromial implant in its ability to restore normal glenohumeral stability and range of motion. The implant was created as a modular device, which captured different implant thicknesses (5mm and 8mm) and constraints (high and low) within its design. In-vitro testing compared the ability of these implants to restore normal shoulder biomechanics. The results indicated the 5mm high constraint implant to be the most effective in restoring normal joint position. Furthermore, range of motion increased when the implant was paired with a tuberoplasty procedure. These results suggest this implant may be advantageous in treating younger patients.

Numerical Modeling Of Vocal Control And Patient-Specific Surgical Planning Of Type 1 Thyroplasty, Mohammadreza Movahhedi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study aims to develop knowledge about the roles of intrinsic laryngeal muscles on voice control in both healthy and disordered conditions through comprehensive computational models. The phonation simulator was built by combining a three-dimensional high-fidelity MRI-based model of the larynx, active muscle mechanics, and fluid-structure-acoustic interaction model, which enabled the exploration of the underlayer mechanisms of the link between individual and/or group muscles contractions under both symmetric and asymmetric activations, vocal fold posture, vocal fold vibration, and voice outcomes during voice production.

The first part of this research extensively investigated the effects of cricothyroid and thyroarytenoid muscle activations on …

Effects Of Imu Sensor Location And Number On The Validity Of Vertical Acceleration Time-Series Data In Countermovement Jumping, Dianne Althouse

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports

Many devices are available for measuring the height of a CMJ. An inertial measurement unit (IMU) measures linear acceleration, orientation, and angular velocity. As an alternative to using IMU estimates of flight time, CMJ height could be estimated by integrating the IMU time-series signal for vertical acceleration to derive CMJ take-off velocity in order to track whole-body center of mass (WBCoM) movement, yet this approach would require valid IMU acceleration data. Thus, the purpose of this study was to quantify the effects of IMU sensor location and number on the validity of vertical acceleration estimation in CMJ. Thirty young adults …

Development Of A Reverse Engineered, Parameterized, And Structurally Validated Computational Model To Identify Design Parameters That Influence American Football Faceguard Performance, William Ferriell

All Dissertations

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) continues to have the greatest incidence among athletes participating in American football. The headgear design research community has focused on developing accurate computational and experimental analysis techniques to better assess the ability of headgear technology to attenuate impacts and protect athletes from TBI. Despite efforts to innovate the headgear system, minimal progress has been made to innovate the faceguard. Although the faceguard is not the primary component of the headgear system that contributes to impact attenuation, faceguard performance metrics, such as weight, structural stiffness, and visual field occlusions, have been linked to athlete safety. To improve …

Motion And Crosslinked Polyethylene Wear In Reverse Total Shoulder Arthroplasty, Christopher Millward

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The reverse total shoulder arthroplasty (RTSA) has quickly grown to become the most commonly used shoulder arthroplasty design; however, reports have shown evidence of RTSA failures related to polyethylene wear and damage. Therefore, the present work investigated the wear of crosslinked polyethylene (XLPE) in environments similar to that of an in vivo RTSA. Additionally, a computational model was developed based on a previous study of the shoulder motions obtained from a selection of typical patients with RTSA. This model quantified the amount of glenohumeral motion that an RTSA may be subjected to in vivo and provided an approximate value for …

Tunable Passive Shock And Vibration Isolators For Rotational Isolation, Chase B. Lemaire

LSU Master's Theses

Shock and vibration isolation are a critical need in helmets, which are widely used to protect athletes, workers, soldiers, and astronauts. Passive vibration isolation systems are a good option when mass and volume should be minimized and when the experienced loadings can be predicted. However, it is frequently challenging to find materials and structures which exhibit the optimal vibration and impact isolation properties for an application. As a case study illustrating a novel design paradigm for rotational shock absorption, a family of optimal solutions for the physical properties of American football helmets is presented. Lumped parameter Simulink models simulate a …

To Develop A Clinically Friendly Multi-Segment Kinematic And Kinetic Foot Model And Test It On Pre-/Post-Hto Patients With Medial Knee Osteoarthritis And Knee Varus, Songlin Zhu

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This study aims to develop a clinically useful multi-segment foot model that will enable the analysis of foot kinematics and kinetics in an optical motion capture laboratory setting. This study will also test the new multi-segment foot model on patients with knee osteoarthritis and varus knee alignment that is corrected by high tibial osteotomy (HTO). The multi-segment foot model divides the foot into four functional segments: the hindfoot, midfoot, forefoot and hallux. An X-Z-Y-Cardan angle rotation convention was used to determine intersegmental dorsi/plantar flexion, inversion/eversion, and internal/external rotation. Joint moments, joint powers and medio-longitudinal arch (MLA) height/length ratio were also …

The Influence Of Flow Mechanotransduction On Endothelial Cells In The Lymphatic Valve Sinus, Joshua Daniel Hall

Doctoral Dissertations

Fluid flow in the cardiovascular and lymphatic systems influences the phenotype of endothelial cells that line the interior to the vessel via mechanotransduction. Geometric features in a vessel such as curvature, bifurcation, and valves promote heterogeneous fluid flow profiles, inducing a heterogeneous endothelial phenotype within a vessel region. Certain flow conditions are associated with vascular dysfunction, and diseases such as atherosclerosis preferentially develop in areas of flow disturbance. Lymphatic vessels are highly analogous to blood vessels, although lymphatic flow characteristics and its effect on lymphatic endothelial cells (LECs) via mechanotransduction have been comparatively less examined. The most significant geometric features …

Estimation Of Joint Moments During Turning Maneuvers In Alpine Skiing Using A Three Dimensional Musculoskeletal Skier Model And A Forward Dynamics Optimization Framework, Dieter Heinrich, Antonie J. Van Den Bogert, Werner Nachbauer

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

In alpine skiing, estimation of the joint moments acting onto the skier is essential to quantify the loading of the skier during turning maneuvers. In the present study, a novel forward dynamics optimization framework is presented to estimate the joint moments acting onto the skier incorporating a three dimensional musculoskeletal model (53 kinematic degrees of freedom, 94 muscles). Kinematic data of a professional skier performing a turning maneuver were captured and used as input data to the optimization framework. In the optimization framework, the musculoskeletal model of the skier was applied to track the experimental data of a skier and …