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Development of an Anti-Decubitus Mattress for Pediatric Use
In an interdisciplinary project between the EMPA, the Children’s Hospital Zurich and the SMS-Lab, we seek to develop an intelligent air mattress for pediatric use that is able to monitor the child's position and inflate or deflate its air chambers to prevent certain injuries to the skin.
Decubitus ulcers are skin injuries that result from prolonged pressure on the skin. They often occur among people who are unable to move. This includes patients in intensive-care units. Prevention of Decubitus involves regularly changing the user’s position, reducing skin pressure, and ensuring skin moisturization.
In this project, we want to develop a special mattress for pediatric patients that aims at preventing Decubiti. The project will be a collaboration with the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (EMPA) and the Children's Hospital Zurich (KISPI).
Decubitus ulcers are skin injuries that result from prolonged pressure on the skin. They often occur among people who are unable to move. This includes patients in intensive-care units. Prevention of Decubitus involves regularly changing the user’s position, reducing skin pressure, and ensuring skin moisturization.
In this project, we want to develop a special mattress for pediatric patients that aims at preventing Decubiti. The project will be a collaboration with the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (EMPA) and the Children's Hospital Zurich (KISPI).
In your project, you will build a closed-loop controller that monitors the pose of the user and triggers in- and deflation of the individual air chambers when needed. During the project, you will be in contact with researchers from EMPA who will act as the technology provider for the fabrics and air chambers as well as with experts from the KISPI who will support you with their medical expertise.
Work packages will depend on the involvement of the other parties as well as your interests but roughly comprise the following:
- I. Literature research
- II. Reading and processing sensor data
- III. Modeling user’s pose based on sensor data
- IV. Interfacing with the mattress
- V. Development of a closed-loop controller
- VI. A brief evaluation of the setup
In your project, you will build a closed-loop controller that monitors the pose of the user and triggers in- and deflation of the individual air chambers when needed. During the project, you will be in contact with researchers from EMPA who will act as the technology provider for the fabrics and air chambers as well as with experts from the KISPI who will support you with their medical expertise.
Work packages will depend on the involvement of the other parties as well as your interests but roughly comprise the following:
- I. Literature research - II. Reading and processing sensor data - III. Modeling user’s pose based on sensor data - IV. Interfacing with the mattress - V. Development of a closed-loop controller - VI. A brief evaluation of the setup
You get the unique opportunity to work on an exciting project and with experts from various fields!
You get the unique opportunity to work on an exciting project and with experts from various fields!
Highly motivated Master student of an engineering discipline. Experience in signal processing and controller design is a plus.
Highly motivated Master student of an engineering discipline. Experience in signal processing and controller design is a plus.
Alexander Breuss, Sensory-Motor Systems Lab, Institute of Robotics and Intelligent Systems, ETH Zurich. alexander.breuss@hest.ethz.ch
Applicants, please include your CV as well as a short paragraph on your engineering background. We are looking forward to hearing from you!
Alexander Breuss, Sensory-Motor Systems Lab, Institute of Robotics and Intelligent Systems, ETH Zurich. alexander.breuss@hest.ethz.ch
Applicants, please include your CV as well as a short paragraph on your engineering background. We are looking forward to hearing from you!