Simetri
Assembly Line
Manufacturing Manakins for Medical Simulation and Training
Human patient simulators may mimic the human body with varying degrees of realism—or fidelity—and can be used in almost every aspect of healthcare education. The most effective medical training devices are those that have the ability to create accurate modeling of the underlying structures of the human body and replicating them digitally and physically, noted Alban. It is why Simetri’s anatomical models and medical training aides integrate electronic, mechanical and computational components and turns to materials science for innovations in soft and skeletal tissue.
The roadmap to digitization for Simetri, said Alban, started first on the mechanical side, when mechanical models started to go from sketches to using SolidWorks and 3D models, and then embedding sensors to capture data before writing the related software and then advancing the software development capability.
In another development, software can monitor when skin has been cut, and when and if the correct fascia (connective tissue encasing the muscle) has been cut. That data is transmitted digitally to the manakin, and the physiology model of that manakin is updated as a result of that new data and, therefore, displays new vital signs. “If you will have done it the right way, you will lose pulse at the foot, but if you do this procedure correctly, you will gain back pulse at the foot because you’re allowing circulation to flow through,” explained Alban.