Features

Researchers at The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the University of Sheffield, and the Tokyo Institute of Technology have demonstrated a tiny origami robot that unfolds itself from a swallowed capsule. Steered by external magnetic fields, the bot can crawl across the stomach wall to remove...

For much of our recent Editorial & Sales Meeting, we discussed trends that we are seeing in the marketplace, in the news, and in discussion with contributors to evaluate coverage for this year and to help sharpen our editorial focus for next year. Manufacturing will continue to see greater coverage as we increase the...

A mobile container from Rice University sterilizes surgical instruments in low-resource settings. The "Sterile Box," built into a standard 20-foot steel shipping container, houses a water system for decontamination and a solar-powered autoclave for steam sterilization.

Drexel University researchers have developed a new method for making polymer nanobrushes. The technology can be used in various medical applications, including coating, biomedical, sensing, and catalysis processes.

Researchers from MIT and Massachusetts General Hospital have developed a small, implantable device that delivers chemotherapy drugs directly to pancreatic tumors. Using mice, the team determined that the implant approach was up to 12 times more effective than the common method of delivering chemotherapy...

Combining the best features of a lobster and an African fish, University of Wisconsin–Madison engineers have created an artificial eye that sees in the dark. The technology could help brighten the dim surroundings presented from surgical scopes.

Two years ago, in Medical Design Briefs, Derek Hunt offered some insight into the benefits of complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology in the miniaturization of medical devices. CMOS has been around for decades and aside from the size benefits which will be discussed shortly, the...

The news cycle is never ending. Now is a time of instant gratification—and with Google, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, along with the buzz of many national, global, and local news sites, news seekers are bombarded with information. Do you need more news stories (and cat videos), or do you need access to...

Using samples of store-bought meat, researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have demonstrated the possibility of real-time video-rate data transmission through tissue. The development supports in-body ultrasonic communications with implanted medical devices.

Vanderbilt University researchers have created an implantable artificial kidney that is powered by a patient's own heart. The bio-hybrid device uses living kidney cells and microchip filters to keep a patient off dialysis and remove waste products, salt, and water.

A University of Missouri School of Medicine researcher has evaluated technology that may be used to replace fluoroscopy, eliminating the need for X-ray during cardiac ablation procedures.

A mind-controlled prosthetic arm developed by Johns Hopkins researchers allows wearers to move individual digits independently of each other. The proof-of-concept device represents an advance in technologies to restore refined hand function to those who have lost arms to injury or disease, say the...

A plasmonic interferometry technique created by Brown University engineers has the potential to enable compact, ultra-sensitive biosensors. The method combines nanotechnology with plasmonics — the interaction between a metal's electrons and light.

University of Rochester researchers created a material that undergoes a shape change when triggered by body heat alone. The shape-memory polymer can be programmed to retain a temporary form and then revert back to its original structure.

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab have developed a new imaging device that consists of a loose bundle of optical fibers; no lenses or protective housing are needed. Tight bundles of the fibers could yield endoscopes with narrower diameters.