Biomechanical Engineering Commons^™

Hemodynamic Effects On Aortic Development Due To Outflow Tract Banding, Humza Ismail

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

Hemodynamic forces drive remodeling of the early cardiac system in embryonic development. Perturbations of normal cardiac blood flow can cause the formation of defects and malformations within the cardiac system. Specifically, changes in hemodynamics can cause the formation of different congenital heart defects. The formation of heart defects has been studied; however, vasculature specific defects caused by changes in blood flow patterns in the early cardiac system have not been studied to the same degree. In this thesis, the effects of hemodynamic changes on arterial development were studied. Outflow tract banding (OTB) was used to cause a local increase in …

3d Parametric Hand To Improve Prosthetic Hand Functionality, Maria C. Gerardi

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The use of prosthetics can significantly enhance an individual’s standard of living, not only offering functional advantages but psychological advantages as well. Unfortunately for children with upper limb reduction, options are limited and rejection rates are high due to a multitude of reasons including discomfort and poor functionality. This study proposes a new parametric 3D design model (Parametric Hand) with an adjustable thumb that can be easily manipulated to the uniqueness of an individual. The Parametric Hand was evaluated, both qualitatively and quantitatively, against the Flexy-Hand 2, a commonly used prosthetic hand. The results showed insignificant differences in all testing …

3-D Silk Fibroin Porous Particles Created By The Ouzo Effect For Biomedical Applications, Ashley Nicole Lamb

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Due to its high biocompatibility and biodegradability, silk fibroin – produced from

Bombyx mori (B. mori) cocoons – has been at the forefront of research for many

biomedical application formats: hydrogels, films, microspheres, and porous

sponges/scaffolding, to name a few. For drug delivery, in particular, porous particles are

desirable for their large surface area, uniform and tunable pore structure, and high

porosity. This thesis focuses on the fabrication of porous particles from silk fibroin by the

very interesting Ouzo effect. The Ouzo effect, so named because of the Greek

beverage ouzo, describes the phenomenon of an ethanol + anethole oil …

Biodiesel Production From Chicken Feather Meal And Its Performance Analysis On Diesel Engine, Venkateswarulu Tc, Indira Mikkili, Krupanidhi Srirama, Nazneen Bobby Md., John Babu Dulla, Venkata Narayana Alugunulla, Vivekananda S, Abraham Peele, Bangaraiah P

Karbala International Journal of Modern Science

Biodiesel has intrinsic lubricating properties due to the presence of long chain fatty acids, which significantly help to reduce engine wear and tear. Poultry waste as an alternative energy source could aid in reducing greenhouse gases. Biodiesel acknowledges environmental issues as it is less toxic than diesel and is biodegradable too. It is much safer to handle due to its high flash point and consequently, air quality improves dramatically. From the energy point of view, as a renewable source of energy, it helps in energy conservation and ensures regular availability for production of fuel. The chicken feather meal with moderate …

Geometric Iteration Of A Knee Prosthetic And Static Stress-Bearing Capacity, Alexander Wheeler

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

The purpose of this study was to improve a prosthetic knee model in terms of size, weight, and biocompatibility. Several tests were run to determine its effectiveness in supporting static and quasistatic loads. The positions in which these tests were run include static upright standing, static one-knee 90 degree kneeling, static squatting at maximum flexion, and quasistatic midstride. These simulations were conducted to find areas of high stress and strain. These patterns were used to determine the maximum body weight a physical prosthetic could support. The material used to create the prosthetic was changed from AISI 316 stainless steel to …

Use Of Body Composition Imaging To Calculate 3-D Inertial Parameters For Inverse Dynamic Analysis Of Youth Pitching Arm Kinetics, Dalton James Jennings

Master's Theses

The objectives of this study were to 1) calculate participant-specific segment inertial parameters using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) data (referred to as full DXA-driven parameters) and compare the pitching arm kinetic predictions using full DXA-driven inverse dynamics vs scaled, DXA mass-driven (using DXA masses but scaled centers of mass and radii of gyration), and DXA scaled inverse dynamics(ID) (using the full DXA-driven inertial parameters averaged across all participants), 2) examine associations between full DXA-driven kinetics and body mass index (BMI) and 3) examine associations between full DXA-driven kinetics and segment mass index (SMI). Eighteen 10- to 11- year-olds pitched …

Electromechanics Modelling Of The Effects Of Myocardial Infarction On Left Ventricular Remodelling, Chin Neng Leong

Student Works (2020-2029)

Myocardial infarction (MI) is one of the diseases with the highest mortality rate. Following MI, myocardium experiences abrupt changes in its loading condition due to the presence of infarct. In response to such changes, myocytes undergo adaptations to maintain homeostasis. However, maladaptation can happen and lead to remodelling, in which the left ventricle (LV) gradually loses its function and eventually turns into heart failure. Nevertheless, the mechanisms underlying LV remodelling are still poorly understood. In this study, a generic LV model was developed, incorporating realistic fibre orientation and excitable contracting myocardium. It was demonstrated that the developed model is capable …

Kinematic Analysis Of Forehand Drop Shot And Long Shot Services In Table Tennis, Ibrahim Norzuria

Student Works (2020-2029)

Table tennis is one of the most widely played sports in the world. A frequent hand movement is compulsory to execute stroke than other limbs, especially the projection of racket and ball speeds,which can help to improve players’ performance. Until now, research on table tennis serving is limited. Service was assumed important in table tennis because the effective serve may allow the serving player to have advantage and control over the game. The 3D dynamic analysis is the appropriate method to analyze a sport activity such as table tennis. Therefore, the aim of research was to determine the kinematic involved …

Adaptable Clean Energy Laboratory, Joao Marcelo Rocha Belmonte, Marc D. Compere

Sustainability Conference

The Adaptable Clean Energy (ACE) Lab is a real-world, long term, test platform that will guide the courses of the Energy Systems track. The lab will provide realistic electrical and HVAC loads that mimic a solar powered office. The lab is a 20’ high cube shipping container modified with a door, windows, lights computers, air conditioner and appliances. The lab is Net-Zero and powered entirely from the sun. Two insulation test sections expose the exterior walls for research access to real external heat loads in a real building

Indoor Navigation For Visually Impaired Person Using Inertial And Geomagnetic Information, Jayanth Ammanabrolu

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Motivated by the need for assistance of indoor guidance for visually impaired persons (VIPs), a sensing system using inertial and geo-magnetic information has been developed to navigate a VIP person indoor. Orientation estimation, which is critical for indoor localization, is conducted using the information of the angular velocity, acceleration and geomagnetic field. By analyzing the characters of human gait, a method to eliminate the accumulated drift introduced by double integrations is introduced. By attaching the inertial sensor to the foot, the periodic stationary state will facilitate the drift correction. Also, the distinctive distortion of the geomagnetic field, which contains spatial …

Development Of An Anatomically And Electrically Conductive Brain Phantom For Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, Hamzah A. Magsood

Theses and Dissertations

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive technique for diagnostics, prognostic, and treatments of various neurological diseases. However, the lack of anatomically realistic brain phantoms has made the experimental verification of stimulation strength in the form of induced electric fields/voltages in the brain tissues an impediment to developing new TMS coils, stimulators, and treatment protocols. There are significant technological, safety, and ethical limitations to test the potential TMS treatment procedures or develop enhancements and refine them on humans or animals. This work aims to bridge the gap by introducing and developing an innovative manufacturing and fabrications process to produce a …

Development Of A Single Use Device Intended To Wash Blood Clot Debris From A Stent Retriever In The Operating Room, Shane Diller

Theses and Dissertations

Ischemic stroke is a life-threatening condition that requires immediate surgical intervention to remove the blood clot that is lodged in the blood vessels of the brain. Mechanical thrombectomy, performed by an endovascular surgeon, involves inserting a stent retriever, which deploys distally and attempts to capture the clot when dragged backwards. A complication prevalent in 50% - 67% of cases is that the blood clot is only partially removed and clings to the mesh framework of the stent. The operating surgeon must either clean the debris from the stent retriever, to be reinserted or throw the stent retriever away and open …

Seismocardiographic Signal Variability And Pulmonary Phase Detection In Adults, Md Khurshidul Azad

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Cardiovascular disease is one of the leading causes of mortality in the world. Early detection and intervention can significantly improve disease management and patient quality of life. Current methods of evaluating cardiac function often involve history and physical examination (including stethoscope auscultation), electrocardiograms (ECG), echocardiogram imaging, computed tomography, and various blood tests. Seismocardiographic signals (SCG) are the chest surface vibrations resulting from cardiomechanical activity. SCG may be recorded using accelerometers and can be used for monitoring and predicting cardiac health. SCG's potential utility may be impeded by its spatial, postural, respiratory, and longitudinal variability. In this dissertation, the SCG variability …

Cnn-Based Estimation Of Sagittal Plane Walking And Running Biomechanics From Measured And Simulated Inertial Sensor Data, Eva Dorschky, Marlies Nitschke, Christine F. Martindale, Antonie J. Van Den Bogert, Anne D. Koelewijn, Bjoern M. Eskofier

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

Machine learning is a promising approach to evaluate human movement based on wearable sensor data. A representative dataset for training data-driven models is crucial to ensure that the model generalizes well to unseen data. However, the acquisition of sufficient data is time-consuming and often infeasible. We present a method to create realistic inertial sensor data with corresponding biomechanical variables by 2D walking and running simulations. We augmented a measured inertial sensor dataset with simulated data for the training of convolutional neural networks to estimate sagittal plane joint angles, joint moments, and ground reaction forces (GRFs) of walking and running. When …

Atv Dynamics And Pediatric Rider Safety, James T. Auxier Ii

Theses and Dissertations--Biomedical Engineering

It has been observed through numerous academic and governmental agency studies that pediatric all-terrain vehicle ridership carries significant risk of injury and death. While no doubt valuable to safety, the post-hoc approach employed in these studies does little to explain the why and how behind the risk factors. Furthermore, there has been no prolonged, widespread, organized, and concerted effort to reconstruct and catalog the details and causes of the large (20,000+) number of ATV-related injuries that occur each year as has been done for road-based motor vehicle accidents. This dissertation takes the opposite approach from a meta-analysis and instead examines …

Effects Of A Hip Orthosis On Lumbopelvic Coordination In Individuals With And Without Low Back Pain, Colin Drury

Theses and Dissertations--Biomedical Engineering

Individuals with low back pain (LBP) demonstrate an abnormal lumbopelvic coordination compared to back-healthy individuals. This abnormal coordination presents itself as a reduction in lumbar contribution and an increase in pelvic contribution to trunk motion. This study investigated the ability of a hip orthosis to correct such an abnormal lumbo-pelvic coordination by restricting pelvic rotation and, as a result, increasing lumbar contributions. The effects of the hip orthosis on the magnitude and timing characteristics of lumbopelvic coordination were investigated in 20 patients with LBP and 20 asymptomatic controls. The orthosis significantly increased lumbar contributions by 11%, 5.42%, 4.84%, and 4.89% …

Electrophoresis In Heterogeneous Hydrogels And Applications In Surface Patterning, Ning Ge

Theses and Dissertations--Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

The creation of chemical micropatterns on surfaces makes it possible to add unique chemical functionality to surfaces, modifying properties such as wettability, or even adding the ability to selectively bind other molecules. The creation of biochemical surface patterning in particular is useful in a variety of fields including tissue engineering and highthroughput drug screening. There are many existing surface patterning techniques which focus on precise control over the patterned geometry, even down to submicron scale features, but they do not allow local control over chemical concentration. So the results are high resolution patterns with binary concentration. There are also existing …

Bacterial Cell Wall Characterization Via Atomic Force And Confocal Microscopy, Joree Sandin

Theses and Dissertations--Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Poor oral hygiene is a severe global health issue, with about 44% of the Earth’s population suffering from untreated tooth decay, accounting for over $100 billion dollars spent on dental services per year in the United States, alone. Manual treatments, such as brushing, flossing, or swishing with antiseptic rinse are the main ways to alleviate harmful bacteria that cause these oral health problems. Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans) is a group of highly antibiotic, Gram-positive bacteria that heavily contribute to oral cavities, plaque build-up, and potential loosening or loss of dental implants if a biofilm develops. Currently, the mechanism …

A Dynamic Neural Network Designed Using Analytical Methods Produces Dynamic Control Properties Similar To An Analogous Classical Controller, Wade William Hilts, Nicholas Szczecinski, Roger Quinn, Alexander Hunt

Mechanical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Human balance is achieved using many concurrent control loops that combine to react to changes in environment, posture, center of mass and other factors affecting stability. Though numerous engineering models of human balance control have been tested, no methods for porting these models to a neural architecture have been established. It is our hypothesis that the analytical methods we have developed, combined with classical control techniques will provide a reasonable starting point for developing dynamic neural controllers that can reproduce classical control capabilities. In previous work, we tested this hypothesis and demonstrated that a biologically-constrained neural controller that replicates human …

The Effects And Analysis Of Implant Type And Surgical Approach In Total Hip Arthroplasty Dislocation Resistance, Brittany Marshall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Total hip arthroplasty (THA) is one of the most successful orthopaedic surgeries performed, in which the hip joint is reconstructed to decrease pain and to improve the functionality to the joint. Although these surgeries are very successful, there still remain areas for improvement, such as failures due to instability and dislocation of the implanted joint. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the effect of surgical entrance approach on dislocation, the effect of implant type, and the effect of capsule repair and closure. The need to quantify the resistance to dislocation is important in understanding the effect that each …