Abstract
In this work, we describe a benchtop model that recreates the motion and function of the diaphragm using a combination of advanced robotic and organic tissue. First, we build a high-fidelity anthropomorphic model of the diaphragm using thermoplastic and elastomeric material based on clinical imaging data. We then attach pneumatic artificial muscles to this elastomeric diaphragm, pre-programmed to move in a clinically relevant manner when pressurized. By inserting this diaphragm as the divider between two chambers in a benchtop model—one representing the thorax and the other the abdomen—and subsequently activating the diaphragm, we can recreate the pressure changes that cause lungs to inflate and deflate during regular breathing. Insertion of organic lungs in the thoracic cavity demonstrates this inflation and deflation in response to the pressures generated by our robotic diaphragm. By tailoring the input pressures and timing, we can represent different breathing motions and disease states. We instrument the model with multiple sensors to measure pressures, volumes, and flows and display these data in real-time, allowing the user to vary inputs such as the breathing rate and compliance of various components, and so they can observe and measure the downstream effect of changing these parameters. In this way, the model elucidates fundamental physiological concepts and can demonstrate pathology and the interplay of components of the respiratory system. This model will serve as an innovative and effective pedagogical tool for educating students on respiratory physiology and pathology in a user-controlled, interactive manner. It will also serve as an anatomically and physiologically accurate testbed for devices or pleural sealants that reside in the thoracic cavity, representing a vast improvement over existing models and ultimately reducing the requirement for testing these technologies in animal models. Finally, it will act as an impactful visualization tool for educating and engaging the broader community.
Highlights
Biohybrid robots are often designated as devices and machines that are actuated by living cells.[1]
The rib cage is broken into two zones: the upper 3D-printed ribs, which act as a boundary between the lungs from the outer thoracic cavity space, and the lower plastic shell, which aims to mimic the zone of apposition
We demonstrate a respiratory simulator that replicates the biomechanics of ventilation that functions as an educational, training, and research tool
Summary
Biohybrid robots are often designated as devices and machines that are actuated by living cells.[1] Here, we reverse this paradigm and use artificial muscles to power passive biological tissue. In a recent review,[2] the authors describe a robotic taxonomic key for biohybrid robots classified into whether organic components are used for structure, actuation, sensing, or control. Our proposal is to use soft robots where organic components are structural (lung tissue) and actuation is provided by synthetic components. Motivated by the goal of reducing animal and human testing, the need for standardized high-fidelity, quantitative test methods for medical devices, and encouraged by the rapid advancements and accessibility in the field of soft robotics, we strive to develop realistic body-part simulators for the investigation of physiology, pathology, and interdependence of physiological systems and for the education and training of students and specialists with interactive high-fidelity simulation scenarios.
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