

Record-breaking win for Mechanical Engineering

Record-breaking win for Mechanical Engineering

Researchers from the School of Mechanical Engineering have taken a record-breaking number of awards at this year's Graphical System Design Achievement Awards, run by National Instruments in Texas.

One of the teams, comprised of undergraduate students, has been awarded winner of the Student Design Showcase for their Kinesthesia toolkit - a programme which merged the gaming technology Microsoft Kinect with National Instruments' (NI) LabVIEW to develop a driver and toolkit. "We started off by developing a LabVIEW toolkit for the Kinect so we could test its capabilities," states Dominic, a Mechanical Engineering student of the University. "After seeing the value of the toolkit, we wanted to share and make it available to other LabVIEW users via the LabVIEW tools network. So everyone in the world can download and install our toolkit, and best of all - it's free."

Microsoft Kinect revolutionised the games industry through its unique ability to track users' motions and the students have been using such technology to develop a selection of motion tracking tools and programs with the specific aim of medical application in areas such as stroke rehabilitation and surgical assistance.

Another team of researchers, led by Dr David Keeling, won three awards for its design of a heart simulator, used to test an artificial "muscle wrap" supporting a failing heart by squeezing it in time with the body's own muscle. Dr David Keeling of the University states: "We can adapt the heart stimulator to fit virtually any size or shape heart, and any sort of heart disease as well." The simulator was designed with the ability to replicate different patient groups' illnesses, giving it the potential to reduce the need for animal testing.


Professor Levesley director of student education for Mechanical Engineering who acted as a supervisor to both teams was at the awards ceremony in Texas said: "It was one of the proudest moments of my career, and shows perfectly how the impact of our teaching and research is being recognised on a truly global stage."

Watch the team and more demo videos of NI Week

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