1Design for biomedical engineers

Abstract: We are developing a text for a capstone design course in biomedical engineering. The course will start with a biomedical need or problem defined at the user level and proceed to an exercise in development of a biomedical engineering device or process for a company or institution. We will solicit and develop a large number of suitable topics so the design course can be run many years without repeating a topic. The text will provide background material on all the aspects of design including project selection, specification development, concept design, analysis, construction, evaluation and documentation. We will class test the manuscript and offer it to others willing to class test it. Need: We have observed that most graduates of biomedical engineering programs find employment in industry. Many of these are employed in the medical device industry and design new biomedical engineering products to serve health care needs. ABET in their publication “Engineering criteria 2000 ” states: “Engineering programs must demonstrate that their graduates have an ability to design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs. ” However most university programs emphasize analysis rather than design. We are developing a text and course as a capstone design course in biomedical engineering