2008-2009

2007-2008

IV Drip Monitor for Developing World Clinics
Team: IV Drip, Tyler Barth, Aaron Cottle, Neha Kamat, Ketan Shah, Chris Vaucher

Full Description                                                    Poster

Pediatric Pulse-Oximeter for Developing Wrold Clinics
Team Three Minute Mile, Allen Chen, Wafa Soofi, Mariko Wei

Full Description                                                    Poster

Optical Immunoassay System using Nanoshell Technology
Team Phoenix, Stacy Cheng, Kai Chu, Shuvro De, Natalia Vasco, Eva Wang, Shann Yu

Full Description                                                    Poster

Phototherapy Lights for Treating Neonatal Jaundice in Developing World Clinics
Team Icterus, Frank Ko, Nick Ripp, Sarah Wulf

Full Description               Update, summer 2008            Poster

Ambulance Refrigeration Device for Hypothermia Treatment
Team: AmbiFridge, Jon Allison, Tessa Kuykendall, Theresa Ring, Stacy Tsang

Full Description                                                    Poster

Non-Slip Trocar for Laproscopic Surgery
Team: NST Group, Nicholas Frankel, Deb Huang, Eric Neuhaus, Sean Paschall, Katherine Wu

Full Description                                                    Poster

Gall Bladder Removal from 5 mm Laproscopy Port
Team Lith-X, Alex Bryant, Ashley Smith, Stephen Wallace

Full Description                                                    Poster

Automated Taylor Spatial Frame
Team Panda, Katherine Crenshaw, David Jerkins, Russell Kampe, Amanda Lee, Jason Roberts

Full Description                                                    Poster

Accurate Pedicle Screw Placement
Team UPS, Marina Boleda, Keith Prabhala, Matt Rooney, Priyanka Sen, Naveen Yadav

Full Description                                                    Poster

2006-2007

CoolMEDS Refrigeration Device
Team I.C.E.: Tim Josef, Jon Ludwig, Jonathon Hanson Christina Berry, Mark Mendenhall

In 2005, an estimated 24.5 million people were living with HIV and about 2.7 million new infections occurred that year (UNAIDS).  HIV has greatly impacted Africa, specifically Sub-Saharan Africa. For pediatric patients, many of their antiretroviral drugs are in liquid form and need to remain cool for extended periods of time with little or no power available.  CoolMEDS provides a solution for refrigeration that can work even when consistent power is not available.

Full Description                                                    Poster

Medicine Dosing Device – The ABC Pump
Team Mongoose: Kim Bennett, Megan Jeans, Brian Schwab, Austin Ginnings

A significant problem in effectively treating pediatric AIDS patients in Africa is that the liquid anti-retroviral medications for young children are must be custom dosed based on the patient’s weight.  To be safe and effective, a precise dose must be drawn up – usually in a syringe and given consistently. Many children are cared for by elderly grandparents who may be illiterate, have poor eyesight, have poor manual dexterity, or lack understanding of why the correct dosage is important.    The ABC Pump provides a solution to delivering accurate doses of liquid medications without requiring literacy skills, manual dexterity or visual acuity.

Full Description                                                    Poster

Diagnostic “Lab in a Backpack”
Team SouthFace: Jamie Lai, Junho Lee, Neel Shrikishen, Po T. Wang, Nick Taboada

As much of the world lives in rural communities, physicians are called on to visit areas that are reached by traveling on foot. Travel over rough terrain or a lack of resources such as electricity can further inhibit the doctor’s ability to provide even routine examinations in these rural environments. For a physician embarking on such a trip, gathering the appropriate medical equipment they need into an easily transportable pack is a tremendous challenge. In addition, many of the rural settings that are visited do not have the power needed to run medical equipment. The MedPack, which was developed by senior design students in BIOE 451, provides an efficient and cost effective way to deliver quality healthcare to remote areas. 

Full Description                 Update, summer 2008                       Poster

NanoSorter: A High Throughput Nanoshell Sorting Device
Team Tiny Tools: Drew Bryant, Joshua Carroll, Dania Daye, Adrielle Fry

There is an increasing interest in developing gold/gold-sulfide nanoshells, silica cores surrounded by conductive shells, as a noninvasive treatment of cancer.  The main limitation in production of these nanoshells is the formation of unwanted byproducts.  Team Tiny Tools designed the “Nanosorter”, a machine to identify and separate the optimal nanoshells. 

Full Description                                                    Poster

Salinogen: A Microgravity IV Fluid Production System
Team MDS: Martin Bost, Jenn Howse, Ny-Ying Lam, Zaven Sargsyan, Patrick Storer

Intravenous fluid therapy is a critical part of treatment for many medical and trauma conditions.  On the International Space Station, seven and half liters of available IV fluids are maintained.  However, some medical conditions require more than the volume of fluid currently available.  Team MDS designed a portable system to produce infusible IV fluid in microgravity. 

Full Description                                                    Poster

A Near-Infrared Fluorescence Detector for Glucose Monitoring
Team GQ: Jaskaran Gill, Jon Martinez, Drew McUsic, Joe Valdez, Albert Yu

Nearly 300 million people worldwide suffer from diabetes.  All diabetics must measure their blood glucose levels regularly to seek appropriate treatment, though current methods for measuring glucose concentrations in the blood are either invasive or inaccurate.  BioTex, a Houston based company, recently designed an implantable sensor that emits fluorescence in proportion to the amount of glucose present.  Team GQ created a detector that will interface with the sensor to measure the glucose concentrations detected by the fluorescence.

Full Description                                                    Poster

Haptic Grippers for Teleoperation
Team HG: Neel Kishan, Nan Xiao

Full Description                                                    Poster

2005-2006

SmartWhistle
MimeSweeper: James Cao, Jean Bao, Olga Bachilo, Kathryn Moncivais

There are currently 60,000 people in the U.S. who have had their voice box removed, of which 60% use a tracheosesophageal voice prosthesis (TEVP) which relies on vibrations generated by the upper esophagus to generate speech.  The most common complaint about the TEVP is that it produces a deep, monotonous voice in all users.  Team MimeSweeper designed the SmartWhistle, an improved TEVP that can produce pitch fluctuation. 

Full Description                                                    Poster

Multi-axial, force feedback system for Tissue Engineering
Super Stretch Armstrong: Mukil Natarajan, Yang Su, Elaine Lee, Brian Boies

Although it is known what diseased tissue looks like, it is not known how the diseased tissue recovers over time.  There is no in vitro model for predicting how tissue remodels as a time-dependant process.  Team Super Stretch Armstrong designed the Multi-Axial Force Feedback Tissue Engineering Device, a bioreactor that stretches cells seeded on a collagen gel and measures the contractile forces of those cells after mechanical stimulation.  Therefore, the cells and their reactions to the stimuli can be measured over time.

Full Description                                                    Poster

Leg Compression Device
G-Dynamo: Patrick Spicer, Molly Mullican, Deanna Dial, Cameron McGriff

The venous system is designed to return blood to the heart for re-oxygenation.  Due to inactivity, pregnancy, or obesity, venous blood return may be insufficient, which can lead to edema, varicose veins, and deep vein thrombosis.  Team GAVRD designed the Gait Activated Venous Return Device.  The device is made up of a sole that is placed under the user’s foot and attached to a cuff that is wrapped around the user’s leg.  As the user steps on the sole of the device, pressure is applied to a cuff that surrounds the calf.  The increased pressure improves venous blood return to the heart.   

Full Description                                                    Poster

Non-invasive fracture healing system
The Thunderbirds: Neha Datta, Vishal Gupta, Laura Higbie, Lei Ji, Jimmy Barnes

When astronauts are in space they lose an average of 1-2% bone mass each month, greatly increasing their risk of bone fracture.  If an astronaut fractured a bone while in space, they would need to align the bone and fixate it so it could heal properly.  Team Thunderbirds created the SmartCast, a non-invasive cast-like fixation device that uses a combination of vibrations, pulsed ultrasounds, and longitudinal compressive stress for repair therapy of bone fractures. 

Full Description                                                    Poster

SpiralAT
TINY: Yoon Kim, Theodore John, Insiya Hussain, Nicole Campazano

Due to various causes, such as cancer, trauma, or congenital defects, some people need to have their trachea reconstructed.  The most common technique is a multi-stage procedure where cartilage is implanted under the skin for several months, harvested, and used for reconstruction of the trachea.  Team TINY addressed this issue by designing a prototype for an artificial trachea that could be implanted in a single surgery. 

Full Description                                                    Poster

Osteonexus- Fracture Fixation Device
High Performance Ninjas: Cynthia Chang, Eric Vu, Alex Gordon, Peter Yang, Elaine Chan

By 2030, NASA hopes to send a manned mission to Mars, a mission that would last approximately 2.5 years.  Exposure to extended microgravity causes an average bone loss of 1-2% per month, greatly increasing the risk of bone fractures.  Team Osteonexus designed an external fixation device that utilizes micro-movement therapies to set a fracture in a microgravity environment.   

Full Description                                                    Poster

NanoStitch
Karl Balsara, Mike Cordray, Sanjay Maniar, Marc Burrell

Current methods of wound closure, such as sutures and liquid adhesives, lead to increased scarring, inconvenience, and possibility of infection.  Laser tissue welding has been introduced as an alternative to traditional suturing, but has inconsistent results.  Team Lazar developed the Nanostitch, a laser tissue welding system that integrates a temperature sensor, an ultrasonic proximity sensor, and a servo-that improves repeatability and consistency of the sutures.

Full Description                                                    Poster

Biopolymer Drug Delivery
Crosslinking Monkeys: Mujtaba Ali, Tommy Coyne, Aylin Tansel, Ben Kahn

Many diabetics have to take insulin to control their blood-sugar levels.  Current methods of insulin delivery are invasive and can be painful and risk infection.    The lab of Dr. Jennifer West at Rice University is developing an insulin delivery system in which biopolymer nanoshells loaded with insulin would be implanted under the skin and activated by an external light source.  Team Crosslinking Monkeys designed the XLink Insulite, a battery powered source of near-infrared light that can fit in the base of a watch.   When turned on, the light would heat the nanoshells, which, in turn, would release the insulin. 

Full Description                                                    Poster

Haptic Grippers for Teleoperation
Team HG: Neel Kishan, Nan Xiao

Full Description                                                    Poster

Integrated Multi-Atmospheric Cell Culture Chamber
BullsEye: Erin Jerkins, Jenny Werdenberg, Ryan Peacock, Felicia Jackson

Full Description                                                    Poster

2004-2005

Team Cobra: Chris Gibson, Roland Robb, Tom Rooney, Austin Elam, Zeyad Metwalli

Due to a lack of gravity, astronauts lose an average of 1.6% of bone and muscle and tissue per month.  Team Cobra designed a countermeasure device, the Spine and Trochanter External Vibration System, which stimulates the load bearing muscles and bones and prevents them from atrophying.  The device is worn by the astronaut and applies vibration stimulus to specific points while simultaneously compressing the body.

Full Description                                                    Poster

Space Owls: Allison Bean, Danika Hayman, Martin Kolnik, Kim Hsu, Sriram Eleswarapu

CASA Design: Audrey Nath, Amaan Mazhar, Carla Bossano, Sunita Chahar

NanoShell 3000: Jennifer Wong, Tom Bowden, Jay Suh, Randy Yeh

West, Inc: Justin Yang, Timmie Wang, Mike Monaco, Reva Kakkar

Hello Kitty: Zo Fuentes, David Chee, Linda Lee, Min-Jye Chen

Immosaic: Laura Knezevic, Lisa Justin, Ashvin Dewan, Jeff Dietrich, Blair Bossart