Great Room Hand Hewn, Reclaimed Timber Truss - Model, Drawing, Fabrication
Abiomed (co-op)
Cannula Tensile Load Characterization Test Design
Project/Role:
During Impella CP device redesign the team needed to reevaluate the tensile strength requirement for the Cannula part.
Action:
Determined through bench top experimentation that the largest tensile forces on the pump occurs when traversing the introducer. Using a hand held force gauge, evaluated the tensile force during extraction through extreme introducer failures.
Results:
Data obtained through this testing was used to revise the Impella CP cannula tensile strength requirement. The team was able to rationalize changing to a more process-friendly material based on the updated requirement.
(a)
(b)
3D printed left ventricle (a) front view of positions (b) top view of positions
3D Printed Left Ventricle Test Design
Project/Role:
New Impella CP pump inlets with different geometries and dimensions had been developed, but there was no way to characterize the flow without an animal study.
Action:
Ordered an anatomically accurate 3D printed left ventricle. Tested the pumps by placing the inlets indifferent positions in the left ventricle (varying from "ideal" to “challenge” positions), running the pumps, and comparing the volumetric flow rates to baseline data.
Results:
Identified a consistent trend to which particular inlets provided the highest flows in the various positions. Used data to help solidify the decision to begin production of the CP pumps with a redesigned inlet.