Unit I

Fundamentals of Biomedical Engineering

Cell Physiology- Facts
Cell is the building block of all living organisms.
A normal adult will have hundreds of Trillions of cells.
Cell body is predominantly made up of plasma (water).
Human Cell consist of smaller self-organized structures called cell organelles.
Cell organelles are functional elements of the cell

Cell Organelles
Cell Membrane
A semipermeable Lipid layer.
Selectively allows ions to pass
through it.
Cytoplasm
A fluid like inner medium consist of
mainly water and ions
It encloses the cell organelles

Cell Organelles
Nucleus Golgi apparatus
Control Centre of the Cell Packaging and Transportation unit of
Contains DNA the cell
Involves in Protein synthesis Cytoskeleton
Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER) It consist of Microtubules and filaments
Consist of Rough and Smooth Gives a structure to the cell
ER Mitochondria
ER with Ribosomes attached Energy power house of the cell Breaks
is called Rough ER ATP molecules to produce energy and
Coordinates protein synthesis ADP(By product)
with Ribosomes

Cell Potentials
At Resting State
No Excitation +
At rest the concentration of Na ions
is less in the intracellular fluid.
+
The flow of K ions in and out of the
cell is equal.
The net effect is that there is
slightly negative potential inside the
cell. This is termed as Resting
potential(−70mv ).
 During an external Stimulus

External Stimulus
When a cell is excited by an
external stimulus the properties
of the cell membrane is changed.
+
Na channels are opened which
causes rapid movement of
Sodium ions into the cell.
The addition of Sodium ions
creates a positive potential called
Action potential(+20mv ).
After a time interval Sodium
pump is activated which turns
the cell to its normal state.

Functional element of Neuron-synapse

Soma
The cell body of neuron is
Soma
It has two regions: a) Dendron b)
Axon
Other organelles are similar to any
cell
Neuronal States
At resting state (No excitation)
Excited state (with stimulation)
produces action potentials
Inhibited state(with stimulation)
produces negative potential
 Organization of Nervous system

Cardio Vascular System

The heart can be considered as two parallel
connected pumps.
The right hand side is called the
right heart(Volume Pump)

The left hand side is called the left heart

(Pressure Pump)
Impure blood from all the parts of the body
is collected by Vena cava and drained in the
right atrium.

The right ventricles then transport the

impure blood to the lungs for pulmonary
ventilation.(Pulmonary Circulation)
Once the impure blood is oxygenated the
pure blood drains into the left atrium.
And then the left ventricles pump the pure
blood to all the parts of the body.
(Systemic Circulation)
Types of Biomedical Instrument
It refers to broad class of electronic devices and systems. Based on the nature of signal acquisition
they are broadly classified as follows:
Direct/Indirect: Based on the
nature of the output. It can be direct
measurement of parameter or inferred
in terms of another parameter.
Invasive/Non-Invasive: Based on
Contact Or Non- contact electrode
placement system.
Performance Parameters/ Selection Criteria
Static parameters
Accuracy: Degree of closeness of the
measured value to the true value.
Precision: It is the measure
Reproducibility of the parameters.
Resolution: The smallest quantity that
can be measured with certainty.
Sensitivity: Sensitivity measures the ratio
of Output to Input value.
Sensor or Actuator: The system can be
a bio medical sensor
or can be externally operated device.
Static/Dynamic: Static devices
measures temporal averages whereas
dynamic devices provide real time
monitoring.
Dynamic parameters
Linearity: A system which satisfies
Superposition and additive rule.
of
Time in variance: Nature of the
system response to input delays.
General Parameter: Systematic and
Random Errors.
 Temperature Sensors

Fiber optic temperature sensors are recent additions to temperature transducer family.
They promise higher efficiency and precision in temperature measurements.
There are two types namely a) Phase interference type b) fiber deformation type.
In phase interference type the temperature measurement is made based on change in
phase difference between the incident radiation and reflected radiation due to temperature
variations.
In fiber deformation type the temperature variations causes change in the dimension of the
bimetallic strip. This in turn deforms the fiber there by changing the optical properties of the
fiber.

Piezoelectricity/Piezoelectric Transducer

Piezoelectric crystals have a property that when they are subjected to mechanical stress the charge density in the
material changes.
The piezoelectric material can be considered as a charge generator.
The change in charge density constitute a potential difference.
The equivalent circuit of a piezoelectric crystal is illustrated with
parallel resistors and capacitors.
 Ultrasonic Transducer

Piezoelectric crystals are used in ultrasonic transducers.

Inverse piezoelectric effect is used in which when the material is subjected to electric
field mechanical vibrations are produced.
These vibrations are ultrasound waves which finds widespread applica- tions in Medical
imaging.

Biomechanics

 Biomechanics - study of the mechanics as it relates to the functional and anatomical

analysis of biological systems and especially humans
 Necessary to study the body’s mechanical characteristics & principles to understand its
movements
 Mechanics is the study of physical actions of forces. Mechanics is divided into a) Statics
b) Dynamics
 Statics - study of systems that are in a constant state of motion, whether at rest with no
motion or moving at a constant velocity without acceleration
 Statics involves all forces acting on the body being in balance resulting in the body being
in equilibrium
 Dynamics - study of systems in motion with acceleration
 A system in acceleration is unbalanced due to unequal forces acting on the body
Kinematics and Kinetics

 Kinematics - description of motion and includes consideration of time, displacement,

velocity, acceleration, and space factors of a system‘s motion
 Kinetics - study of forces associated with the motion of a body

Types of Mechanics found in human body

 Musculoskeletal system arrangement provides for 3 types of machines in
producing movement
 Levers (most common), Wheel-axles, Pulleys
 Levers

 Humans moves through a system of levers

 Levers cannot be changed, but they can be utilized more efficiently
 lever - a rigid bar that turns about an axis of rotation or a fulcrum
 axis - point of rotation about which lever moves

 Levers rotate about an axis as a result of force (effort, E) being applied to

cause its movement against a resistance or weight
 In the body bones represent the bars, joints are the axes, and muscles
contract to apply force
 Three points determine type of lever & for which kind of motion it is best
suited
 Axis (A)- fulcrum - the point of rotation
 Point (F) of force application (usually muscle insertion)
 Point (R) of resistance application (center of gravity of lever) or (location
of an external resistance)

The mechanical advantage of levers may be determined using the following equations:
Mechanical advantage = Resistance / Force or Length of force arm / Length of resistance arm

Illustration of Lever arrangement in forearm

Wheel and Axle Arrangement

 Used primarily to enhance range of motion & speed of movement in the

musculoskeletal system
 function essentially as a form of a lever
 When either the wheel or axle turn, the other must turn as well
 Both complete one turn at the same time
 Center of the wheel & the axle both correspond to the fulcrum
 Both the radius of the wheel & the radius of the axle correspond to the force arms

 If the wheel radius is greater than the radius of the axle, then, due to the longer force
arm, the wheel has a mechanical advantage over the axle
 a relatively smaller force may be applied to the wheel to move a relatively greater
resistance applied to the axle
 if the radius of the wheel is 3 times the radius of the axle, then the wheel has a 3 to 1
mechanical advantage over the axle
Mechanical advantage of a wheel & axle by considering the radius of the wheel over the
axle
Mechanical advantage = radius of the wheel / radius of the axle

Pulley Arrangement

 Single pulleys function to change effective direction of force application

 Mechanical advantage = 1
 Pulleys may be combined to form compound pulleys to increase mechanical
advantage
 Each additional rope increases mechanical advantage by 1

Pulley arrangement in the human foot

Laws of motion and physical activities

 Body motion is produced or started by some action of muscular system

 Motion cannot occur without a force
 Muscular system is source of force in humans
Two types of motion

 linear motion
 angular motion

 Linear motion (translatory motion) - motion along a line

 rectilinear motion - motion along a straight line
 curvilinear motion - motion along a curved line
 Linear displacement - distance that a system moves in a straight line

 Angular motion (rotary motion) - rotation around an axis

 In the body, the axis of rotation is provided by the various joints
 Linear & angular motion are related
 angular motion of the joints produces the linear motion of walking

Law of Inertia
 A body in motion tends to remain in motion at the same speed in a straight line unless
acted on by a force; a body at rest tends to remain at rest unless acted on by a force
 Muscles produce force to start, stop, accelerate, decelerate & change the direction of
motion
Law of Acceleration

 A change in the acceleration of a body occurs in the same direction as the force that
caused it. The change in acceleration is directly proportional to the force causing it and
inversely proportional to the mass of the body.
 Acceleration - the rate of change in velocity
 To attain speed in moving the body, a strong muscular force is generally necessary
 Mass - the amount of matter in the body affects the speed & acceleration in physical
movements

Laws of friction
 Friction - force that results from the resistance between surfaces of two objects from
moving upon one another
 Depending increased or decreased friction may be desired
 To run, we depend upon friction forces between our feet & the ground so that we may
exert force against the ground & propel ourselves forward
Balance and equilibrium

 Balance - ability to control equilibrium, either static or dynamic

 Equilibrium - state of zero acceleration where there is no change in the speed or direction
of the body
 static or dynamic
 Static equilibrium - body is at rest or completely motionless
 Dynamic equilibrium - all applied & inertial forces acting on the moving body are in
balance, resulting in movement with unchanging speed or direction
 To control equilibrium & achieve balance, stability needs to be maximized
 Stability is the resistance to a change in the body's acceleration or disturbance of the
body's equilibrium
 Stability is enhanced by determining body's center of gravity & appropriately changing it
 Center of gravity - point at which all of body's mass & weight are equally balanced or
equally distributed in all directions
 Balance - important in resting & moving bodies