Anglia Ruskin University

MERG is going through an exciting phase, with the construction of the Medical Engineering Laboratory (MEL) within the Postgraduate Medical Institute (PMI), which is due to complete in March 2011. MEL has been carefully designed to allow a range of research, teaching and clinical activities. This will enable the analysis of healthy, pathologic and athletic movement patterns. A large mass floor system was developed to minimise vibration induced errors to sensitive equipment, such as the force plates, cameras and material testing machine. Ground reaction forces will be measured with adjustably repositionable force plates to ensure flexibility of research activities. This is the first of its kind in the UK. A prototype of this approach can be found in the Leon Root Motion Analysis Laboratory (LRMAL) at the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS), one of the leading orthopaedic and rheumatology hospitals in the United States. This laboratory design was developed by Dr Howard Hillstrom, Director of the LRMAL, who has significantly contributed his knowledge and expertise towards the development of the MEL right from the initial stage. MERG was awarded £300,000 from the Science Research Investment Fund in December 2008 for the purchase of capital equipment.

• Computer Simulations: medical imaging, computer aided design and finite element packages
• Mechanical Testing Machines
• Scanning Electron Microscopy
• Motion Tracking Systems
• Force Plates
• The Novel Emed-x Plantar Force Measurement
• Interface Pressure Mapping Systems
• The Combined Photoplethysmography and Doppler System