K. Yaghmaei, G. Bas, N.M. Durakbasa
COMPUTATIONAL MODELING OF MECHANICAL PROPERTIES CARBON NANOTUBE-REINFORCED HYDROXYAPATITE NANOCOMPOSITE BY MEANS OF MECHANICAL NANOMETROLOGY

In this study, a classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulation of the stress-strain properties of the nanocomposite made from HAP and a single-walled carbon nanotube and a double-walled carbon nanotube is presented to validate the experimentally measured mechanical properties of hydroxyapatite (HAP)-based composites via computational modeling techniques. The Young modulus and the yield points of both pure and nanotube-reinforced HAP are determined and the results are exploited in HAP-based bioceramics for use of medical nanotechnology as bone-replacing tissue engineering.

Leopoldo Angrisani, Guido d’Alessandro, Mauro D’Arco
A TRANSCUTANEOUS WIRELESS ENERGY TRANSMISSION BASED BATTERY RECHARGER FOR IMPLANTED PACEMAKER

A transcutaneous wireless energy transmission system exploiting resonant inductive coupling to recharge the battery of a pacemaker is proposed. Pacemakers are electronic biomedical devices necessary for the treatment of specific cardiovascular diseases. Energy provision required by the pacemaker to operate is usually granted by means of long lasting batteries, that anyway require periodical checks and substitution. Wireless energy transfer to medical implants is therefore desirable, since it offers a non-invasive way to recharge batteries of implanted devices, viz. it could allow to delay surgery for substitution. The proposed system shows that transcutaneous energy transfer can be attained by coupling the electronics of the implanted hardware with an external energy source. In particular it supplies a primary coil, which is positioned at contact with the chest of the patient, with an alternate current to produce a magnetic flux; the latter enfolds a secondary coil, which is instead implanted in the human body in the proximity of the pacemaker, and allows to retrieve the energy to recharge the implanted battery. To limit the eddy currents that would be induced in the titanium case of the pacemaker and could produce undesired heating and/or malfunctioning, the proposed system utilizes a magnetic shield; the shield is also useful to avoid that the aforementioned parasitic coupling worsens the energy transfer efficiency.

Alejandro M. Rivero, Elisabeth Costa Monteiro, Daniel S. Leite, Frederico S. Tannenbaum, Miguel A. G. Pinto, Karla Figueiredo
IMPLEMENTING FIRST STAGES OF QUALITY BY DESIGN APPROACH IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN ASSISTIVE ROBOTICS TECHNOLOGY

The Quality by Design (QbD) concept has been successfully used in the pharmaceutical industry since 2004. This work introduces the first steps for the implementation of QbD in the medical device field and incorporates metrological concerns to the quality approach, determining the Target Product Profile, Critical Quality Attributes and Critical Process Parameters for a robotic assistive technology development intended to help locomotion of elderly people.

Michele Scervini
DRIFT OF NICKEL BASED MIMS THERMOCOUPLES AT TEMPERATURES ABOVE 1000°C: THE EFFECT OF THERMOCOUPLE DIAMETER

In this work the drift of type K and type N MIMS thermocouples has been studied as a function of the thermocouple outer diameter in the temperature range 1000 - 1300°C. It is shown that type K and type N MIMS thermocouples drift significantly above 1000°C, the drift being more pronounced for smaller diameters. The data presented in this paper allows to compare the performance of type K and type N thermocouples at high temperatures over a wide temperature range and at different diameters.

Peter Pavlasek, Stanislav Ďuriš, Rudolf Palencar
SELECTED FACTORS AFFECTING THE PRECISION OF THERMOCOUPLES

The importance of precise measurements of various quantities is undeniable, as their values effect many processes in industry and other fields. One of the important quantities measured, that effects a majority of processes is undoubtedly temperature. The following work is focused on selected factors that affects the precision of thermoelectric sensors from noble and base metals. All of the results are put into context with the factors that affect the measurement capabilities of thermocouples.