Biomechanical Engineering & Assistive Technologies
We have been working since 2007 on a series of research projects that study the human body and in particular its joints and its skeleton from the mechanical engineering point of view.
The human skeleton is the internal framework of the body and provides support, movement, protection, production of blood cells, storage of ions and endocrine regulation. The focus of our work is on the support and movement functions.
For an example, for the knee there is a complicated network of static and dynamic stabilizers. These structures serve to function as both dynamic and static restraints to pathological motion and impart the stability and biomechanical characteristics of the knee. Damage to them by accident or sports activities requires surgery and the employment of mechanical devices to reconstruct the damaged ligaments.
Our group has participated in the development of such devices for ACL reconstruction and has developed the appropriate realistic 3D models of the intact and reconstructed knee join. These models are used to perform numerical analyses on using finite element software, and identify the distribution of stress and strain in the structures (bones, ligaments, reconstruction devices and tendon graft) involved. The aim was to identify highly stressed regions which may be prone to failure or provide an understanding of surgical findings.
The work and subsequent collaboration with the State University of New York Korea (SUNY Korea) focused on assistive technology and in particular on the study of mobility aids and the development of improved low cost aids that can be used in more challenging environments, like soft ground and uneven terrain.
One of the initial aims was creating a simple, affordable, and universal tech solution that could enhance the manual crutch or cane in order to improve their performance and be compatible with existing conditions of infrastructure and terrain in developing countries. The suggested design draw on bionics (biologically inspired engineering) and operates on unpaved, uneven and soft ground, accommodating rocks up to 20 mm, and provides improved stability for the user.
See article on LinkedIn on mobility aids in challenging environments.
On this front, we have participated in a project on assistive technologies for refugee camps in Bangladesh with Grand Challenges Canada. While 1 in 10 people living with disabilities have access to assistive devices, traditional crutches are not well suited to uneven, unpaved grounds often found in conflict or refugee camp settings, and are therefore often abandoned by users. Lack of mobility becomes an increased barrier to their safety and well-being.
During the development stage of the mobility aids, we looked into non-contact ways of assessing the gait of people walking with crutches and without crutches. An innovative approach of video analysis showed the feasibility of such an inexpensive approach which lead to a qualitative assessement of gait characteristics. The early promising results of these studies form the basis of current research projects.
Our efforts to date have produced a number of scientific papers on these subjects.
Journal papers on biomechanical engineering
Vairis, A., Petousis, M., Vidakis, N., Stefanoudakis, G., Kandyla, B., “Finite element modelling of a novel anterior cruciate ligament repairing device”, Journal of Engineering Science and Technology Review, 2013, vol.6, no.1, pp.1-6.
Vairis, A., Petousis, M., Vidakis, N., Kandyla, B., Tsainis, A.M., “Evaluation of a PCL deficient human knee joint finite element model”, QScience Connect, 2014, issue 2014.
Vairis, A., Stefanoudakis, G., Petousis, M., Vidakis, N., Tsainis, A.M., Kandyla, B., “Evaluation of an Intact, an ACL-Deficient and a Reconstructed Human Knee Joint Finite Element Model”, Computer Methods in Biomechanics and Biomedical Engineering, 2016, vol.19, no.3, pp.263-270.
Journal papers on assistive technologies
Brown, S., Vairis, A., Petousis, M.,Masoumifar, A., "Common problems with the conventional design of crutches: proposing a safer design and discussing the potential impact", Technology in Society, 2020, vol.60, art.101215. doi.org/10.1016/j.techsoc.2019.101215
Vairis A., Boyak J., Brown S., Bess M., Bae K.H., Petousis M. (2021) Gait Analysis Using Video for Disabled People in Marginalized Communities. In: Singh M., Kang DK., Lee JH., Tiwary U.S., Singh D., Chung WY. (eds) Intelligent Human Computer Interaction. IHCI 2020. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 12616. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-68452-5_14. (IF:1.071) (Q3)
Brown, S., Hussain, F., Vairis, A., Hacker, E., Bess, M., "Remote Monitoring of Disability: A Case Study of Mobility Aid in Rohingya Camp". In: Singh M., Kang DK., Lee JH., Tiwary U.S., Singh D., Chung WY. (eds) Intelligent Human Computer Interaction. IHCI 2021. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 13184, pp.117-123. Springer, Cham. (IF:1.071) (Q3)
Conference papers on biomechanical engineering
Petousis, M., Vairis, A., Vidakis, N., Pappas, G., Koudoumas, M., “Exploiting three dimensional printing in medical applications – Two EMTTU lab case studies”, 6th International Conference “New Horizons in Industry, Business and Education”, Santorini, 27-28 August 2009, pp.314-320.
Vairis, A., Petousis, M., Vidakis, N., Stefanoudakis, G., Kandyla, B., “Modelling a knee ligament repair device”, IEEE 9th International Symposium on Distributed Computing and Applications to Business, Engineering & Science DCABES 2010, Hong Kong, 10-12 August 2010.
Vairis, A., Petousis, M., Vidakis, N., Stefanoudakis, G., Kandyla, B., “A study on a reconstructed anterior cruciate ligament”, 2011 International Conference on Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (CMAE 2011), New Delhi, India, March 21-23 2011, also published in Advanced Materials Research Jan 2012, vol. 433 - 440, pp. 763-769.
Petousis, M., Vairis, A., Yfanti, S., Kandyla, B., Chrysoulakis, C., “Study of a 3D knee model”, 7th International Conference “New Horizons in Industry, Business and Education”, Chios, 25-26 August 2011, pp.281-287.
Vairis, A., Petousis,M., Kandyla, B., Chrisoulakis, C., “Intact and ACL-Deficient Knee Model Evaluation”, International Conference on Biomechanics and Biomedical Engineering, Copenhagen, Denmark, June 11-12, 2012.
Vairis, A., Petousis, M., Vidakis, N., Kandyla, B., Chrisoulakis, C., Tsainis, A.M., “Evaluating the efficacy of a numerical model of a human anatomy joint”, 4th EAEEIE Annual Conference, Chania, 30-31 May 2013.
Vairis, A., Petousis, M., Stefanoudakis, G., Vidakis, N., Kandyla, B, Tsainis, A., “Studying the intact, ACL-deficient and reconstructed human knee joint using a finite element model”, American Society of Mechanical Engineers-International Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition, San Diego, 15-21 November 2013
Vairis, A., Petousis, M., Vidakis, N., Kandyla, B., Tsainis, A.M., “Finite element model for the study of a PCL deficient human knee joint mechanical behavior”, 8th International Conference “New Horizons in Industry, Business and Education”, Chania, 29-30 August 2013.
Vidakis, N., Petousis, M., Vairis, A., Tsainis, M.A., Stivaktakis, M., Vasilopoulou, I., “Computational biomechanical modelling of the human lumbar spine: a literature review and an example”, 9th International Conference “New Horizons in Industry, Business and Education”, Skiathos, 27-29 August 2015
Conference papers on assistive technologies
Vairis, A., Brown, S., Kim, S.H., Masoumifar, A., "A proposed design of a versatile mobility aid for challenging environments" , TENCON 2018, S.Korea, 28-31 October 2018.
Brown, S., Vairis, A., Masoumifar, A., Petousis, M., "Enhancing Performance of Crutches in Challenging Environments: Proposing an Alternative Design and Assessing the Expected Impact", TENCON 2019, India, 17-21 October 2019.
Vairis, A., Boyack, J., Brown, S., Bess, M., Bae, K.H., Petousis, M., "Gait analysis using video for disabled people in marginalized communities", 12th International Conference on Intelligent Human Computer Interaction (IHCI-2020), Daegu, South Korea
Brown, S., Hussain, F., Vairis, A., Parker, E., Bess, M., " Remote Monitoring of Disability: A Case Study of Mobility Aid in Rohingya Camp", 13th International Conference on Intelligent Human Computer Interaction (IHCI-2021), 20-22 December 2021, Kent, USA
Brown, S., Hussain, F., Hacker, E., Vairis, A., Bess, M., “Evaluating mobility and access of disabled refugees in Rohingya camps in Cox’s Bazar", 16th International Conference on Social Implications of Computers in Developing Countries (IFIP WG 9.4), 25-27 May 2022, Lima, Peru.
Published works on innovative gait analysis
Vairis A., Boyak J., Brown S., Bess M., Bae K.H., Petousis M. (2021) Gait Analysis Using Video for Disabled People in Marginalized Communities. In: Singh M., Kang DK., Lee JH., Tiwary U.S., Singh D., Chung WY. (eds) Intelligent Human Computer Interaction. IHCI 2020. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 12616. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-68452-5_14. (IF:1.071) (Q3)
Vairis, A., Boyack, J., Brown, S., Bess, M., Bae, K.H., Petousis, M., "Gait analysis using video for disabled people in marginalized communities", 12th International Conference on Intelligent Human Computer Interaction (IHCI-2020), Daegu, South Korea
Brown, S., Hussain, F., Vairis, A., Parker, E., Bess, M., " Remote Monitoring of Disability: A Case Study of Mobility Aid in Rohingya Camp", 13th International Conference on Intelligent Human Computer Interaction (IHCI-2021), 20-22 December 2021, Kent, USA
Brown, S., Hussain, F., Hacker, E., Vairis, A., Bess, M., “Evaluating mobility and access of disabled refugees in Rohingya camps in Cox’s Bazar", 16th International Conference on Social Implications of Computers in Developing Countries (IFIP WG 9.4), 25-27 May 2022, Lima, Peru.