June 2015

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R&D: Medical
Shape-Shifting GEM Sensor Responds to Radio Frequencies
Geometrically encoded magnetic sensors (GEMs), developed by researchers from National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), react to local biochemical conditions by changing their shape and response to radio frequencies.
R&D: Medical
New Adhesive Works Underwater
An adhesive technology helps to bond human tissue in wet or moist conditions. The chemistry is based on the environmentally-friendly adhesive qualities of mussels and other shellfish.
R&D: Medical
Brain-Machine Interface Controls Prosthetic Hand
A new algorithm allows a person to use his or her thoughts to grasp a bottle or other object. The non-invasive brain monitoring technique, developed by University of Houston researchers, will help the team understand the neuroscience behind the action of grasping.
R&D: Robotics, Automation & Control
Researchers Use Water to Improve Nanowires
Rice University graduate students and researchers have made nanowires between 6 and 16 nanometers wide. The wires are made from a variety of materials, including silicon, silicon dioxide, gold, chromium, tungsten, titanium, titanium dioxide, and aluminum. The development of sub-10-nanometer sizes shows...
R&D: Medical
Researchers Improve Magnetic-Field Detector
A Massachusetts Institute of Technology team has developed a new, ultrasensitive magnetic-field detector. The device could lead to miniaturized, battery-powered devices for medical imaging.
R&D: Medical
Smartphone-Based Device Spots Molecular Tumors
A device developed by Massachusetts General Hospital investigators provides rapid, accurate molecular diagnosis of tumors and other diseases. The smartphone-based technology collects detailed microscopic images for digital analysis of the molecular composition of cells and tissues.
Briefs: Medical
GE Global Research Niskayuna, NY www.geglobalresearch.com/news A multi-disciplinary team of scientists at GE Global Research, the technology development arm for GE, have combined a wide...
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Briefs: Medical
https://news.ncsu.edu Humans grow to be quite efficient at walking. Simulations of human locomotion show that walking on level ground at a steady speed should theoretically require no power input at...
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Briefs: Medical
http://news.yale.edu A team of researchers at Yale University assessed the “criticality” of all 62 metals on the Periodic Table of Elements, and developed key insights into which materials might become...
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Briefs: Medical
http://news.nd.edu/news/56829 An applied mathematician and an environmental biotechnologist at the University of Notre Dame have teamed up to develop a new computational model that simulates the...
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From the Editor: Design
Six Words that Can Kill Innovation
While the late great comedian George Carlin had his infamous “Seven Words”, only six words are needed to kill innovation in any industry: “We’ve always done it this way.” How much more might be accomplished if those six words could be replaced with “what if”? What if we tried it this way? What if we...
Features: Medical
Hospital acquired infections (HAIs) represent one of the key challenges facing today’s healthcare industry. According to a recent study published by the...
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Features: Medical
Prior to 2006, commercially available aqueous-based polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) coatings utilized perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) as a principal surfactant. PFOA was a highly efficient additive and...
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Applications: Tubing & Extrusion
Understanding material selection trends and complying with the needs of governing regulatory agencies is fundamental to success in medical device production. As manufacturers set...
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Features: Design
An experienced, recommended, custom furniture professional came over to my house to bid on building a low-profile cabinet for...
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Products: Medical
Smith Metal Products, Center City, MN, produces parts as small as .060" OD, IDs as small as .010", and a minimum wall thickness of .010" for a limited distance. Part lengths up to 3" by .25" inches thick,...
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Products: Medical
Bayer MaterialScience LLC, Pittsburgh, PA, introduces a new polycarbonate blend developed specifically for wearable devices. Makroblend® M525 polycarbonate/ polyester provides a high level of chemical...
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Products: Medical
Tech-Etch, Inc., Plymouth, MA, manufactures precision thin metal parts from specialty stainless steel alloys like MP35N used in implanted medical devices, Elgiloy® used in replacement heart valves, as well as 716...
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Products: Medical
ODU-USA, Camarillo, CA, now offers MEDI-SNAP®, a plastic and metal circular connector with miniature push-pull locking connector solutions for reusable and disposable medical applications....
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Products: Medical
Excelitas Technologies Corp., Waltham, MA, has launched of its new OmniCure® AC2 Series UV LED Curing Systems. This small form factor, aircooled product provides excellent curing uniformity and...
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Products: Medical
Teleflex Medical OEM, Gurnee, IL, announces a portfolio of highly-specialized capabilities for delivering innovative, fiber-based solutions to medical device manufacturers. Vertically integrated...
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Products: Medical
PTI Engineered Plastics, Inc., Macomb, MI, expands its services into the additive manufacturing /3D world with the procurement of the Lumex Avance-25—currently the only machine capable of manufacturing...
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Products: Medical
Infinity LTL Engineered Compounds, Morrisville, PA, introduces its new medicalgrade, flame retardant ColorRx® compounds, which can be based on polycarbonate, PC/ABS, or PC/polyester alloys. In addition to ISO...
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Products: Medical
Qosina, Edgewood, NY, has added seven new sanitary flanges with barbs, available in two sizes, 0.5"/0.75" mini and 1"/1.5" standard. Sanitary flanges have an oversized hose barb design that facilitates a strong...
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Products: Medical
Proto Labs, Maple Plain, MN, has introduced medical-grade liquid silicone rubber (LSR) material to its quick-turn injection molding capabilities in addition to its standard and optical-grade LSR materials....
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Products: Medical
Shin-Etsu Silicones of America, Inc., Akron, OH, announces its new Low Dn LIMS (Liquid Injection Molding Systems) product line, the KEG2003H, which has been formulated and manufactured to significantly reduce the...
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Products: Medical
Guill Tool & Engineering, West Warwick, RI, announces the latest generation of its Series 800, the 2-to-6 layer extrusion tooling designed to produce the highest quality, highest material-efficient 1/8" to 6"...
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Products: Medical
Polymax Thermoplastic Elastomers, Inc., Waukegan, IL, announces an expanded line of premium quality TPE. Developed using new product formulations and custom-engineered production machinery, these...
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Products: Medical
Sensirion, Inc., Westlake Village, CA, introduces a new gas sensor that is the first in the world to be based on multipixel technology, and a new barometric pressure sensor. Both new sensors...
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Products: Medical
Dow Corning, Midland, MI, introduces its advanced QP1-2 Liquid Silicone Rubber (LSR) product line. These five new platinumcatalyzed, heat-cured silicone elastomers offer medical device...
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INSIDER: Materials
3D Bioprinting to Attempt Nerve Cell Regeneration
Researchers at Michigan Technological University, Houghton, recently acquired a 3D bioprinter with which they plan to “print” synthesized nerve tissue. The key, they say, is developing the right “bioink” or printable tissue. One of the team member’s research on cellulose nanocrystals as...
INSIDER: Medical
Device Captures Circulating Tumor Cells
A microfluidic device called the Cluster-Chip, developed by a team of scientists at Massachusetts General Hospital, is the first designed specifically to capture clusters of two or more rare circulating tumor cells (CTCs), rather than single cells. The ability to isolate intact clusters, they say, can enable...
INSIDER: Medical
Electronic Devices Self-Destruct When Heated
University of Illinois engineers have created heat-activated self-destructing electronic devices. A radio-controlled trigger remotely prompts the process on demand.
INSIDER: Medical
Researchers Create Single-Molecule Diode
Columbia Engineering researchers have designed a new technique to build a single-molecule diode. Their results achieved rectification ratios as high as 250, fifty times higher than earlier designs.
INSIDER: Medical
Neuroprosthetic Device Enables Intuitive Control of Robotic Arm
Through a clinical collaboration between Caltech, Keck Medicine of USC, and Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center, a man paralyzed from the neck down can use a robotic arm to perform a fluid hand-shaking gesture, drink a beverage, and even play "rock, paper, scissors." The...
INSIDER: Medical
Hydrogel Accelerates Healing Process
An injectable hydrogel from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science helps skin wounds heal more quickly. An instant scaffold created by the material allows new tissue to latch on and grow within the cavities formed between linked spheres of gel.
INSIDER: Medical
Soft Robotic Glove Improves Patients' Grasping Ability
A robotic glove built by a team of engineers at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering and Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) could assist patients suffering from loss of hand motor control.
INSIDER: Electronics & Computers
3D Printing with Copper and Gold Achieved
A team of scientists from the University of Twente in The Netherlands has discovered a way to 3D print structures of copper and gold, by stacking microscopically small metal droplets. These droplets are made by melting a thin metal film using a pulsed laser. They say that this technology would allow...
Industry News: Medical
June 2015 Mid-Month Industry News
Here is the latest batch of news from the medical products community. Please click the link for more.
INSIDER: Materials
Heart-Powered Electronics
Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have created thin, flexible electronic devices that efficiently harvest the mechanical energy from natural motions of the human body. In addition to advances in materials processing to enable fabrication of these thin film devices, accurate analytical models...
INSIDER: Medical
Engineers Control Soft Material's Surface Textures
Using a 3D printer and detailed computer simulations, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology produced soft material with controllable surface textures that can be varied by squeezing. By creating smooth, ridged, or custom-patterned surfaces at will, the technique will allow...
INSIDER: Medical
New Foam Could Improve Prosthetic Comfort
Changchun "Chad" Zeng from Florida State University's High Performance Materials Institute (HPMI) has developed a new auxetic foam. Prosthetic socks made from the foam will help amputees adjust prosthetic devices to their specific limb shape and volume.
Industry News: Medical
June 2015 Month-End Industry News
Here is the latest batch of news from the medical products community. Please click the link for more.
INSIDER: Medical
Nanowire Implants Offer Remote-Controlled Drug Delivery
Using nanowires, Purdue University researchers has created a new implantable drug-delivery system that can be wirelessly controlled. The nanowires respond to an electromagnetic field generated by a separate device, which can be used to release a pre-loaded drug. The engineering team says that...
INSIDER: Medical
Hospital Integrates Imaging Techniques to Create 3D Heart Model
By integrating two common imaging techniques, experts from Spectrum Health Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital have produced a three-dimensional anatomic model of a patient’s heart. The hybrid prototype could provide better diagnostic capability and improved interventional and surgical...

Ask the Expert

Eric Dietsch on the Benefits of Nitinol Wire
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In collaboration with the Fort Wayne Metals Engineering team, Eric Dietsch focuses on supporting customers with material recommendations, product development, and education. Eric is available to help you and your company with any Nitinol-related questions or needs that you may have.

Inside Story

Inside Story: Trends in Packaging and Sterilization
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Eurofins Medical Device Testing (MDT) provides a full scope of testing services. In this interview, Eurofins’ experts, Sunny Modi, PhD, Director of Package Testing; and Elizabeth Sydnor, Director of Microbiology; answer common questions on medical device packaging and sterilization.

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