R&D

Magnetic Sensors Track Muscle Length

Using a simple set of magnets, researchers have devised a sophisticated way to monitor muscle movements.

Graphene Boosts Flexible and Wearable Electronics

Researchers demonstrate that graphene can greatly improve electrical circuits required for wearable and flexible electronics such as smart health patches and other flexible devices.

Stretchable Rubber Diode for Medical, Electronic Devices

A fully rubbery stretchable diode maintains performance.

Mouthguard Controls Devices by Biting

Individuals who have limited hand function can control devices such as smartphones, computers, and wheelchairs by wearing a smart mouthguard. The novel bite-controlled optoelectronic system contains...

Gel-Like, Radioactive Implant Kills Pancreatic Cancer

Biomedical engineers have demonstrated the most effective treatment for pancreatic cancer ever recorded in mouse models. The new treatment completely eliminated tumors in 80 percent of...

Light-Sensing Device for Lupus

A 3D printed light-sensing medical device is placed directly on the skin and gives real-time feedback to correlate light exposure with disease flareups. The device could help millions of people worldwide with...

Skin-Attachable Auditory Sensor Functions in Noisy Environments

A new auditory sensor will be useful for healthcare devices that diagnose respiratory diseases. The skin-attachable device will also be useful as a sensor in microphones to aid...

Device Diagnoses Eye Disorders

Researchers have developed an ophthalmological device that can be used to diagnose some degenerative eye disorders long before the onset of the first symptoms. In early clinical trials, the prototype was shown...

AI: Microneedle Patches Restore Hair

Researchers have used artificial intelligence (AI) to predict compounds that could neutralize baldness-causing reactive oxygen species in the scalp. They constructed a proof-of-concept microneedle patch...

Thermoresponsive Smart Materials

The researchers used water as the solvent and developed an LCST-type thermoresponsive polymer by adding alkaline earth metal ions — which are divalent cations — to polymers and aqueous solutions.

Pulsed MRI System Could Selectively Deliver Drugs to the Brain

Using an office-based human-sized version of this non-invasive device, it may prove possible to cure Alzheimer’s by delivering drugs and genes to specified tracts in the brain under real-time imaging guidance.

Optical Fiber Sensor Measures Deviations in Spine

The sensors have already been used to monitor the curvature of structures and robotic arms. But measuring both the magnitude and direction of the spine’s curvature presents an additional challenge.

Stable Electrodes for Long-Term BCI

The electrode can be worn comfortably and stable for up to four weeks, without the potential need for any medical personnel to intervene to maintain it.

Tiny Swimming Robots Treat Deadly Pneumonia in Mice

The microrobots are made of algae cells whose surfaces are speckled with antibiotic-filled nanoparticles.

Robot Sleeves Help Kids with Cerebral Palsy

The garments will contain sealed, airtight regions that can inflate, making them temporarily rigid and providing the force for movement.

Tiny Optical Sensors Could End Hospital Bed Sores

Scientists have designed tiny smart bed sensors embedded in hospital mattresses could put an end to painful and potentially life-threatening pressure sores, thanks to new technology. The...

Low-Cost Device Rapidly Detects Hepatitis C

Researchers have designed a microfluidic platform that incorporates different steps that are usually performed by trained personnel in sophisticated lab settings on a single platform. The entire...

Wireless Activation of Targeted Brain Circuits

A research team has created wireless technology to remotely activate specific brain circuits in fruit flies in under one second. The team used magnetic signals to activate targeted neurons that...

Dissolving Implantable Relieves Pain

A team of researchers has developed a small, soft, flexible implant that relieves pain on demand and without the use of drugs. The first-of-its-kind device could provide a much-needed alternative to...

Generating Electricity from the Blink of an Eye

A research team has obtained electrical energy from small movements of the human body, such as the blink of an eye, by using biocompatible materials to minimize the device’s thickness. The...

Microfluidic-Based Soft Robotic Prosthetics

Scientists have developed a new type of prosthetic using microfluidics-enabled soft robotics that promises to greatly reduce skin ulcerations and pain in patients who have had an amputation...

Novel Patching Material for Bone Defects

Scientists have discovered a new type of bone repairing material that could be used to more precisely fix bone defects. The bioresponsive ceramic interacts with an enzyme found in blood to be...

Breath-Driven Concept Could Transform Prosthetics

Researchers have developed a hand prosthesis powered and controlled by the user’s breathing. The simple, lightweight device offers an alternative to Bowden cable-driven body-powered...

Copper Nanowires Combat Spread of Diseases

An ancient metal used for its microbial properties is the basis for a materials-based solution to disinfection. A team of scientists has developed an antimicrobial spray that deposits a layer of...

‘Smart’ Necklace May Track Health Through Sweat

A team of researchers has demonstrated a battery-free, wireless biochemical sensor that detected the blood sugar — or glucose — humans excrete from their skin when they exercise.

Electrospinning Advantages for Wearable Technology

Researchers have shown that electrospun materials have many advantages over conventional bulk materials for the development of wearables. Electrospun materials’ high surface-to-volume...

Device Measures Vitals from Ear Canal

A new device, called MedSENS, measures various vital parameters from the ear canal. The instrument consists of a probe about the size of an ear plug, which contains innovative measuring sensors. It is...

Smartphone Clip-On Detects Zika in Blood

Researchers have developed an instrument that can be clipped on to a smartphone to rapidly test for Zika virus in a single droplet of blood.

Hybrid Material Enables Next-Gen E-Skin

Researchers have developed three-in-one hybrid material smart skin for the next generation of artificial, electronic skin using a novel process. With 2,000 individual sensors per square millimeter,...