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BioMEMS

A Microrobot for Intravascular Treatments

December 24, 2018

A particular challenge in intravascular treatments is the control of submillimeter guidewires. This requires a new microrobotics approach. A soft magnetic microrobot is required, consisting of (1) a flexible polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) [more...]

Medical Sensors Design Conference

June 24, 2018

Rapid advances in medical technology, and the increasing need to store and rapidly access data are making sensors an important part of the medical landscape. At the Medical Sensors Design Conference June 25 through 26 at the McEnery [more...]

Low-Cost Plastic Sensors Could Monitor a Range of Health Conditions

June 24, 2018

A low-cost sensor made from semiconducting plastic could be used to diagnose or monitor a wide range of health conditions, such as surgical complications or neurodegenerative diseases. (Image Credit: KAUST) An international team of [more...]

Ink-jet Printing Promises Neural Precision

May 15, 2018

Researchers led by Patrick Smith of the University of Sheffield in the UK recently showed that they could print neuronal and other types of biological cells using a piezoelectric ink-jet printer. The neuronal cells printed with the [more...]

Precision Waveguides with Inkjet Printing

May 6, 2018

Scientists at a Swiss laboratory have demonstrated an inkjet method for precise printing of tiny optical components such as waveguides (Opt. Express, doi:10.1364/OE.26.011934). The new technique leverages capillary forces—instead of [more...]

Microsensor Could Help Individualize Dialysis Treatment

April 15, 2018

Microscope picture of the microfluidic device developed by researcher Manoj Sharma. The horizontal stripe is the microchannel, which measures 0.2 mm across. The six other stripes are optic fibers that capture the fluorescent light and lead [more...]

UC Davis licenses technology for miniaturized chemical detectors

December 25, 2017

The University of California, Davis, is pleased to announce a licensing agreement with SensIT Ventures Inc. for a breakthrough technology that can be used to identify a broad range of chemicals from environmental samples. The license, [more...]

Vibrating Sensors Could Identify Blood Biomarkers

December 2, 2017

Purdue University researchers have found a method of identifying biological markers in small amounts of blood that they believe could be used to detect a myriad of diseases, infections and different medical conditions at early stages. [more...]

Low-cost Wearables Manufactured by Hybrid 3D Printing

September 10, 2017

A complete hybrid 3D-printed device flexes and conforms to the body’s shap (Image credit: Alex Valentine, Lori Sanders and Human skin must flex and stretch to accommodate the body’s every move. Anything worn tight on the body [more...]

Miniaturized Mass Spectrometer for Mars Exploration Has Massive Potential

September 4, 2017

BYU researchers have created a miniaturized, portable version of a tool now capable of analyzing Mars’ atmosphere—and that’s just one of its myriad possible uses. For decades mass spectrometers have offered a relatively fast [more...]

Sweat-Inducing Sensor Could Make Blood Samples Obsolete

August 16, 2017

Scientists have recently used medical sensors to collect and sample sweat. Collecting this fluid allows them to analyze a patient’s body far more thoroughly than most other methods ever could. Analyzing sweat can often yield results [more...]

Engineers Find Better Way to Detect Nanoparticles

August 16, 2017

Two light scatterers, represented by the blue spheres, are utilized to tune the sensors to exceptional points, at which light propagates in one direction. (Image: W. Chen and L. Yang) Credit: Washington University in St. Louis It’s long [more...]

UBC Engineers Invent 3D-printed Device to Monitor Water Quality

August 1, 2017

UBC researchers say measuring water quality continuously is vital in ensuring people’s drinking water is safe (Image credit: WANYEE LI/METRO) Engineers at the University of British Okanagan have designed a 3D-printed device that [more...]

Skin Vaccination with Microneedle Patch

July 23, 2017

Biodegradable micro-needle patch (image credit: Georgia State University) A boosting skin vaccination with a biodegradable microneedle patch and protein constructed from sequences of influenza virus subtypes could improve the effectiveness [more...]

‘Smart’ Insulin Patches Developed at UNC

July 4, 2017

Glucose-responsive “smart insulin patches” like this one developed by UNC and N.C. State could one day simplify the way people manage diabetes.( Image credit: COURTESY OF ZHEN GU) For the 29 million Americans living with diabetes, a [more...]

New Implantable Biosensor Could Monitor Cell-Level Changes in Patients

June 24, 2017

The idea behind Efferent Labs – implanting a device containing living cells into the body to act as a biologic sensor – has attracted the attention of the scientific community. Although it is extremely difficult technically, the idea [more...]

Nanofiber Device Detects Forces and Sound Waves from Live Cells

June 14, 2017

A novel nano-sized optical fiber, about 100 times thinner than a human hair, is sensitive enough to detect forces down to 160 femtonewtons (fN) (about ten trillion times smaller than a newton) when placed in a solution containing live [more...]

Ultraviolet Light Sensor for Wearable Devices

June 10, 2017

The new UV light sensor technology uses only silicon semiconductors to selectively detect and measure the light intensity of UV-A and UV-B light wavebands. (Credit: Tohoku University) Mass production technology for silicon based [more...]

Using Distinctive Body Locations to Control Mobile Devices

May 29, 2017

Computer scientists from Saarland University and the US company Google are giving wrinkles, knuckles and birthmarks a whole new meaning. Similarly to temporary tattoos for children, the researchers are placing ultra-thin, electronic [more...]

Smartphone-Controlled Cells Could Pump Insulin for Diabetics

May 18, 2017

A researcher uses a smartphone to control light levels in mice with implanted LED discs. Scientists in China have used a smartphone and a technique called optogenetics to precisely control cells to deliver insulin to diabetic mice. The [more...]