3,455 research outputs found
Three-dimensional structure of the flow inside the left ventricle of the human heart
The laboratory models of the human heart left ventricle developed in the last
decades gave a valuable contribution to the comprehension of the role of the
fluid dynamics in the cardiac function and to support the interpretation of the
data obtained in vivo. Nevertheless, some questions are still open and new ones
stem from the continuous improvements in the diagnostic imaging techniques.
Many of these unresolved issues are related to the three-dimensional structure
of the left-ventricular flow during the cardiac cycle. In this paper we
investigated in detail this aspect using a laboratory model. The ventricle was
simulated by a flexible sack varying its volume in time according to a
physiologically shaped law. Velocities measured during several cycles on series
of parallel planes, taken from two orthogonal points of view, were combined
together in order to reconstruct the phase averaged, three-dimensional velocity
field. During the diastole, three main steps are recognized in the evolution of
the vortical structures: i) straight propagation in the direction of the long
axis of a vortex-ring originated from the mitral orifice; ii) asymmetric
development of the vortex-ring on an inclined plane; iii) single vortex
formation. The analysis of three-dimensional data gives the experimental
evidence of the reorganization of the flow in a single vortex persisting until
the end of the diastole. This flow pattern seems to optimize the cardiac
function since it directs velocity towards the aortic valve just before the
systole and minimizes the fraction of blood residing within the ventricle for
more cycles
Fluid dynamics of aortic root dilation in Marfan syndrome
Aortic root dilation and propensity to dissection are typical manifestations
of the Marfan Syndrome (MS), a genetic defect leading to the degeneration of
the elastic fibres. Dilation affects the structure of the flow and, in turn,
altered flow may play a role in vessel dilation, generation of aneurysms, and
dissection. The aim of the present work is the investigation in-vitro of the
fluid dynamic modifications occurring as a consequence of the morphological
changes typically induced in the aortic root by MS. A mock-loop reproducing the
left ventricle outflow tract and the aortic root was used to measure time
resolved velocity maps on a longitudinal symmetry plane of the aortic root. Two
dilated model aortas, designed to resemble morphological characteristics
typically observed in MS patients, have been compared to a reference, healthy
geometry. The aortic model was designed to quantitatively reproduce the change
of aortic distensibility caused by MS. Results demonstrate that vorticity
released from the valve leaflets, and possibly accumulating in the root, plays
a fundamental role in redirecting the systolic jet issued from the aortic
valve. The altered systolic flow also determines a different residual flow
during the diastole.Comment: Accepted versio
Technology applications
A summary of NASA Technology Utilization programs for the period of 1 December 1971 through 31 May 1972 is presented. An abbreviated description of the overall Technology Utilization Applications Program is provided as a background for the specific applications examples. Subjects discussed are in the broad headings of: (1) cancer, (2) cardiovascular disease, (2) medical instrumentation, (4) urinary system disorders, (5) rehabilitation medicine, (6) air and water pollution, (7) housing and urban construction, (8) fire safety, (9) law enforcement and criminalistics, (10) transportation, and (11) mine safety
Cascade Control of a Hydraulic Prosthetic Knee
A leg prosthesis test robot with hydraulic knee actuator is modeled and tested with closed loop control simulation. A cascade control architecture is designed for the system, the outer loop is controlled by a robust passivity-based controller (RPBC) and the inner loop is controlled by an optimization method. The control algorithm provides knee angle tracking with an RMS error of 0.07 degrees. The research contributes to the field of prosthetics by showing that it is possible to find effective closed loop control algorithm for a newly proposed hydraulic knee prosthesis. The simulations demonstrate the efficiency of RPBC\u27s ability to control complex, nonlinear and multivariable system with plant variability and parameter uncertainty. Dynamic equations for the hydraulic knee actuator are derived from bond graph, an optimization method is used to solve the inversion problem. Low-pass filters are implemented to eliminate signal chatter. Necessary modifications of knee actuator parameters are discussed and recommended to achieve better tracking performance
Cascade Control of a Hydraulic Prosthetic Knee
A leg prosthesis test robot with hydraulic knee actuator is modeled and tested with closed loop control simulation. A cascade control architecture is designed for the system, the outer loop is controlled by a robust passivity-based controller (RPBC) and the inner loop is controlled by an optimization method. The control algorithm provides knee angle tracking with an RMS error of 0.07 degrees. The research contributes to the field of prosthetics by showing that it is possible to find effective closed loop control algorithm for a newly proposed hydraulic knee prosthesis. The simulations demonstrate the efficiency of RPBC\u27s ability to control complex, nonlinear and multivariable system with plant variability and parameter uncertainty. Dynamic equations for the hydraulic knee actuator are derived from bond graph, an optimization method is used to solve the inversion problem. Low-pass filters are implemented to eliminate signal chatter. Necessary modifications of knee actuator parameters are discussed and recommended to achieve better tracking performance
Applications of aerospace technology in the public sector
Current activities of the program to accelerate specific applications of space related technology in major public sector problem areas are summarized for the period 1 June 1971 through 30 November 1971. An overview of NASA technology, technology applications, and supporting activities are presented. Specific technology applications in biomedicine are reported including cancer detection, treatment and research; cardiovascular diseases, diagnosis, and treatment; medical instrumentation; kidney function disorders, treatment, and research; and rehabilitation medicine
Cascade Control of a Hydraulic Prosthetic Knee
A leg prosthesis test robot with hydraulic knee actuator is modeled and tested with closed loop control simulation. A cascade control architecture is designed for the system, the outer loop is controlled by a robust passivity-based controller (RPBC) and the inner loop is controlled by an optimization method. The control algorithm provides knee angle tracking with an RMS error of 0.07 degrees. The research contributes to the field of prosthetics by showing that it is possible to find effective closed loop control algorithm for a newly proposed hydraulic knee prosthesis. The simulations demonstrate the efficiency of RPBC\u27s ability to control complex, nonlinear and multivariable system with plant variability and parameter uncertainty. Dynamic equations for the hydraulic knee actuator are derived from bond graph, an optimization method is used to solve the inversion problem. Low-pass filters are implemented to eliminate signal chatter. Necessary modifications of knee actuator parameters are discussed and recommended to achieve better tracking performance
A parallel interaction potential approach coupled with the immersed boundary method for fully resolved simulations of deformable interfaces and membranes
In this paper we show and discuss the use of a versatile interaction
potential approach coupled with an immersed boundary method to simulate a
variety of flows involving deformable bodies. In particular, we focus on two
kinds of problems, namely (i) deformation of liquid-liquid interfaces and (ii)
flow in the left ventricle of the heart with either a mechanical or a natural
valve. Both examples have in common the two-way interaction of the flow with a
deformable interface or a membrane. The interaction potential approach (de
Tullio & Pascazio, Jou. Comp. Phys., 2016; Tanaka, Wada and Nakamura,
Computational Biomechanics, 2016) with minor modifications can be used to
capture the deformation dynamics in both classes of problems. We show that the
approach can be used to replicate the deformation dynamics of liquid-liquid
interfaces through the use of ad-hoc elastic constants. The results from our
simulations agree very well with previous studies on the deformation of drops
in standard flow configurations such as deforming drop in a shear flow or a
cross flow. We show that the same potential approach can also be used to study
the flow in the left ventricle of the heart. The flow imposed into the
ventricle interacts dynamically with the mitral valve (mechanical or natural)
and the ventricle which are simulated using the same model. Results from these
simulations are compared with ad- hoc in-house experimental measurements.
Finally, a parallelisation scheme is presented, as parallelisation is
unavoidable when studying large scale problems involving several thousands of
simultaneously deforming bodies on hundreds of distributed memory computing
processors
Intelligent Controls for a Semi-Active Hydraulic Prosthetic Knee
We discuss open loop control development and simulation results for a semi-active above-knee prosthesis. The control signal consists of two hydraulic valve settings. These valves control a rotary actuator that provides torque to the prosthetic knee. We develop open loop control using biogeography-based optimization (BBO), which is a recently developed evolutionary algorithm, and gradient descent. We use gradient descent to show that the control generated by BBO is locally optimal. This research contributes to the field of evolutionary algorithms by demonstrating that BBO is successful at finding optimal solutions to complex, real-world, nonlinear, time varying control problems. The research contributes to the field of prosthetics by showing that it is possible to find effective open loop control signals for a newly proposed semi-active hydraulic knee prosthesis. The control algorithm provides knee angle tracking with an RMS error of 7.9 degrees, and thigh angle tracking with an RMS error of 4.7 degrees. Robustness tests show that the BBO control solution is affected very little by disturbances added during the simulation. However, the open loop control is very sensitive to the initial conditions. So a closed loop control is needed to mitigate the effects of varying initial conditions. We implement a proportional, integral, derivative (PID) controller for the prosthesis and show that it is not a sufficient form of closed loop control. Instead, we implement artificial neural networks (ANNs) as the mechanism for closed loop control. We show that ANNs can greatly improve performance when noise and disturbance cause high tracking errors, thus reducing the risk of stumbles and falls. We also show that ANNs are able to improve average performance by as much as 8 over open loop control. We also discuss embedded system implementation with a microcontroller and associated hardware and softwar
Aerospace Medicine and Biology: A continuing bibliography with indexes, supplement 192
This bibliography lists 247 reports, articles, and other documents introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system in March 1979
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