Research Centre for Biomedical Engineering (CREB) of Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC)

Motion capture
Motion Analysis Laboratory has 18 NaturalPoint OptiTrack Flex 3 infrared cameras; which offer integrated image capture, processing, and motion tracking in a powerful, compact package. These cameras are capable of capturing fast moving objects at a sample rate of 100 Hz. By maximizing its 640 × 480 VGA resolution through advanced image processing algorithms, these cameras can track markers down to sub-millimeter movements with repeatable accuracy.

Force measurement
The Laboratory includes two AMTI AccuGait force plates for the dynamic measurement of ground reaction forces and moments in space, and the displacement of the centre of pressure (COP).

Electromyography (EMG)
We can also perform surface electromyography (EMG) measurements using a 16-channel EMG system, that consists of 2 Biometrics Datalog MWX8 and 16 surface EMG sensors SX230.

Pressure measurement
Tekscan F-Scan system. This system uses flexible and thin sensors that are placed inside the shoe to capture timing and foot pressure information. The Datalogger VersaTek Unit allows to store the data up to 750 Hz.

Recording and analysis of high-density electromyographical (HD-EMG)

• 2 EMG amplifiers with 128 channels each (EMG-USB, OT Bioelettronica, Italy).
• Mechanical braces and torque sensors for recording of isometric contractions (OT Bioelettronica, Italy).
• Motion tracking camera system (V120: Trio, OptiTrack, USA).

Development of surgery aid systems

• Surgery assistance teleoperation station.
• Multirobot system for robotic surgery.

Assistential robotics laboratory.

Microscopy

• Scanning electron microscopy (SEM).
• Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM).
• Transmission electron microscopy (TEM).
• Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM).
• Focus Ion Beam Scanning Electron Microscopy (FIB-SEM).
• Optical Microscopy and Image Analysis (MO-IA).
• Confocal laser scanning microscopy (CSLM).
• Interferometric microscopy.
• Fluorescence Microscopy.

Chemical and structural characterization of materials

• X-ray Diffraction (XRD).
• Mass spectrometry.
• High performance liquid chromatography –mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS).
• Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy
• X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy
• Raman spectroscopy
• Atomic emission spectroscopy (AES)
• Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry FTIR.
• Ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy (UV).
• Chemical degradation studies.
• Kinetic determinations for drug delivery.
• Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS).
• pH determination in chemical solutions.
• Metallographic analysis.

Mechanical characterization

• Static and dynamic, uniaxial and biaxial Mechanical tests (compression, tensile, bending, and torsion) both in dry and liquid environments.
• Creep testing.
• Pull-out tests and torque tests on screws, implants and implanted samples.
• Injectability testing.
• Fatigue dynamic tests in both liquid and dry media.
• Hardness testing.
• Adhesion evaluation of coatings by Scratch-Test.
• Wear resistance testing by pin-on-disk and Ball-on-disk
• Extensiometric and video-extensiometric strain measurements.

Physical characterization

• Mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP).
• X -ray micro Computed Tomography (micro-CT).
• Density determination by Helium pycnometry.
• Gas adsorption measurements (specific surface area and porosity).
• Roughness evaluation by Surface profilometry and optical interferometry.
• Wettability studies by Contact angle method.
• Particle size analysis and distribution by laser diffraction.
• Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC).

Heat and Surface treatments

• Heat and surface treatments until 1550ºC in both atmospheric and controlled atmosphere.
• Autoclave sterilization treatments.
• Accelerated corrosion treatments.
• Accelerated aging treatments.
• Low temperature plasma surface treatments and coatings.
• Activation and functionalization surface treatments.
• Freeze drying of samples by lyophilization.
• Dip-coating and electrochemical coatings.
• Physical, mechanical, Chemical and thermo-chemical surface texturization treatments.
• Metal anodizing surface treatments.

Electrochemical characterization

• Ion release tests.
• Corrosion tests.
• Measurement of electric conductivity in liquid solutions.

Biological Characterization

• Direct and indirect cytotoxicity tests on different cell lines according to UNE-EN ISO 10993 Standard.
• Cell adhesion, proliferation & differentiation tests
• Bacterial (mono-strain and multi-strain) adhesion and biofilm formation tests
• Live & Dead bacterial test.
• Protein surface adsorption and immobilization testing.
• Quantitative Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-qPCR).

Animal studies and Histological characterization

• Experimental design, management and execution of in vivo studies in different animal models in order to evaluate tissue response to biomaterials.
• Histological processing by histological refrigerated Cutting System.
• Fixation, dehydration, polymerisation, grinding and polishing of histological samples.  
• Colorimetric staining and immunohistochemical tissue preparation for histological evaluation.
• Graphite coatings on histological samples for SEM evaluation.
• Histomorphometric analysis by SEM, optical and fluorescence microscopy.
• Histological and histopathological analysis of tissue explanted samples.

Forensic engineering.

• Engineering applied to forensic studies of defective components, machines and implants.
• Fractographic studies of industrial components, medical implants and prosthesis.

Calibration and Dosimetry service:
The Calibration and Dosimetry Laboratory has been authorized by the National Accreditation Agency (ENAC) as Calibration Laboratory No. 23 according to the ISO 17025 standard for the following activities:

• Monitor calibration for environmental dosimetry, and for personal dosimetry. Quality control in x-ray radiodiagnostics and standard ionization chambers for x-rays, gamma radiation and beta radiation.
• Calibration of portable monitors for surface contamination.
• Calibration of high voltage measurement equipment for x-ray equipment.
• Irradiation of personal and environmental dosimeters.

Radiological protection service  
Radiation protection monitors and thermoluminescent dosimeters, to set up and classify work areas where staff are professionally exposed to ionizing radiation.

Recording and analysis of surface electroencaphalographic signals

• 32 channel EEG amplifier (Mitsar, Russia).
• Software for designing protocols for stimulation and mental tasks to record event-related potentials (ePrime, Psychology Software Tools, USA).

Respiratory modeling
Analysis of respiratory muscle activity by surface EMG signals.

• MATLAB software and specialized toolboxes.
• Computer server and storage units for calculations and backup systems.

Robotics, Biomechanics and Rehab
https://creb.upc.edu/robotics-biomechanics-and-rehab/

Motion capture
Motion Analysis Laboratory has 18 NaturalPoint OptiTrack Flex 3 infrared cameras; which offer integrated image capture, processing, and motion tracking in a powerful, compact package. These cameras are capable of capturing fast moving objects at a sample rate of 100 Hz. By maximizing its 640 × 480 VGA resolution through advanced image processing algorithms, these cameras can track markers down to sub-millimeter movements with repeatable accuracy. The cameras operate with the software Motive, also from OptiTrack, and we export captures to OpenSim or Matlab to develop our dynamic analyses and simulations.

Force measurement
The Laboratory includes two AMTI AccuGait force plates for the dynamic measurement of ground reaction forces and moments in space, and the displacement of the centre of pressure (COP). These force plates use Hall effect sensors to accurately measure ground reaction forces, while allowing for internal amplification and high overload protection on all axes. Force measurements can be viewed in real time using the AMTI NetForce software for data acquisition, or directly imported to motion analysis softwares to perform inverse dynamics.

Electromyography (EMG)
We can also perform surface electromyography (EMG) measurements using a 16-channel EMG system, that consists of 2 Biometrics Datalog MWX8 and 16 surface EMG sensors SX230. The design of the system allows to measure the muscle electrical activity during contraction with little skin preparation. The quality of the signal received is excellent for both static and dynamic applications. The system comes with a dedicated software for data visualisation and analysis. Moreover, the system can be synchronised with third party systems, such as the motion capture system or the force plates.

Pressure measurement
Measuring in-shoe plantar pressure using the Tekscan F-Scan system. This system uses flexible and thin sensors that are placed inside the shoe to capture timing and foot pressure information during a certain human motion, such as walking or running. The Datalogger VersaTek Unit allows to store the data at a sample rate up to 750 Hz. The system comes with a dedicated software for data visualization and analysis. Moreover, the system can be synchronized with third party systems, such as the motion capture system or the force plates.

Recording and analysis of high-density electromyographical (HD-EMG)
Recording signals during static or dynamic exercises for diagnosis and rehabilitation optimization. Motor task prediction based on EMG. Decomposition of HD-EMG signals and extraction of neural information.

• 2 EMG amplifiers with 128 channels each (EMG-USB, OT Bioelettronica, Italy).
• Mechanical braces and torque sensors for recording of isometric contractions (OT Bioelettronica, Italy).
• Motion tracking camera system (V120: Trio, OptiTrack, USA).

Development of surgery aid systems

• Surgery assistance teleoperation station.
• Multirobot system for robotic surgery.

Assistential robotics

• Assistential robotics laboratory.

Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering
https://creb.upc.edu/biomaterials-and-tissue-engineering/

Microscopy

• Scanning electron microscopy (SEM).
• Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM).
• Transmission electron microscopy (TEM).
• Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM).
• Focus Ion Beam Scanning Electron Microscopy (FIB-SEM).
• Optical Microscopy and Image Analysis (MO-IA).
• Confocal laser scanning microscopy (CSLM).
• Interferometric microscopy.
• Fluorescence Microscopy.

Chemical and structural characterization of materials

• X-ray Diffraction (XRD).
• Mass spectrometry.
• High performance liquid chromatography –mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS).
• Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy
• X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy
• Raman spectroscopy
• Atomic emission spectroscopy (AES)
• Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry FTIR.
• Ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy (UV).
• Chemical degradation studies.
• Kinetic determinations for drug delivery.
• Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS).
• pH determination in chemical solutions.
• Metallographic analysis

Mechanical characterization

• Static and dynamic, uniaxial and biaxial Mechanical tests (compression, tensile, bending, and torsion) both in dry and liquid environments.
• Creep testing.
• Pull-out tests and torque tests on screws, implants and implanted samples.
• Injectability testing.
• Fatigue dynamic tests in both liquid and dry media.
• Hardness testing.
• Adhesion evaluation of coatings by Scratch-Test.
• Wear resistance testing by pin-on-disk and Ball-on-disk
• Extensiometric and video-extensiometric strain measurements.

Physical characterization

• Mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP).
• X -ray micro Computed Tomography (micro-CT).
• Density determination by Helium pycnometry.
• Gas adsorption measurements (specific surface area and porosity).
• Roughness evaluation by Surface profilometry and optical interferometry.
• Wettability studies by Contact angle method.
• Particle size analysis and distribution by laser diffraction.
• Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC).

Heat and Surface treatments

• Heat and surface treatments until 1550ºC in both atmospheric and controlled atmosphere.
• Autoclave sterilization treatments.
• Accelerated corrosion treatments.
• Accelerated aging treatments.
• Low temperature plasma surface treatments and coatings.
• Activation and functionalization surface treatments.
• Freeze drying of samples by lyophilization.
• Dip-coating and electrochemical coatings.
• Physical, mechanical, Chemical and thermo-chemical surface texturization treatments.
• Metal anodizing surface treatments.

Electrochemical characterization

• Ion release tests.
• Corrosion tests.
• Measurement of electric conductivity in liquid solutions.

Biological Characterization

• Direct and indirect cytotoxicity tests on different cell lines according to UNE-EN ISO 10993 Standard.
• Cell adhesion, proliferation & differentiation tests
• Bacterial (mono-strain and multi-strain) adhesion and biofilm formation tests
• Live & Dead bacterial test.
• Protein surface adsorption and immobilization testing.
• Quantitative Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-qPCR).

Animal studies and Histological characterization

• Experimental design, management and execution of in vivo studies in different animal models  in order to evaluate tissue response to biomaterials.
• Histological processing by histological refrigerated Cutting System.
• Fixation, dehydration, polymerisation, grinding and polishing of histological samples.  
• Colorimetric staining and immunohistochemical tissue preparation for histological evaluation.
• Graphite coatings on histological samples for SEM evaluation.
• Histomorphometric analysis by SEM, optical and fluorescence microscopy.
• Histological and histopathological analysis of tissue explanted samples.

Forensic engineering.

• Engineering applied to forensic studies of defective components, machines and implants.
• Fractographic studies of industrial components, medical implants and prosthesis.

Data processing and analysis.

• Statistical Analysis of Data and experimental results.
• Image processing, treatment and analysis for data acquisition.

Technical consultancy.

• Design, development and optimization of processes, products and components for the biomedical sector and preclinical testing, both in vitro and in vivo.
• Technological support to bring new medical devices into the market: from the initial idea to the launch of a new product.
• Patent analysis and tracking.
• Analysis of the state of the art in technology and in the bio/health sector.
• Detection of public calls for tenders.
• Design, drafting, management and implementation of research projects.
• Technical experts for legal causes and accidents.
• Design and implementation of training courses and sessions for companies.

Data, Analysis and Sensoring
https://creb.upc.edu/data-analysis-and-sensoring/

Data analysis / data science

• Analysis of high throughput data, including metabolomics, methylation and genome wide expression.
• Integrative analysis between several omics employing a knowledge graph or model-agnostic.
• Functional enrichment with state of the art techniques and custom technologies.
• Analysis of physiological signals, including linear and non-linear techniques (ECG, EEG).
• Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence (AI) for clinical and biomedical devices.
• Custom design of reactive data science dashboards including custom-built advanced graphical displays (D3, three.js, python/dash).
• Automatic reporting from synchronous or event triggered events from biomedical databases.
• Generic Big-Data related techniques and Deep Learning analysis.
• Generic consultancy.

Biomedical Image Processing:

• Multic-hannel fluorescence microscopy .
• Super-resolution methods & molecular images.
• Cardiac & brain imaging.
• Calcium imaging & cell signalling.
• Fetal ultrasound.
• Magnetic Ressonance Imaging.
• Capsule endoscopy.

Data Analysis & IA:

• Exploratory data analysis.
• Advanced visualization methods.
• Data clustering.
• Dimensionality reduction.
• Supervised classification methods.
• AI interpretability.

Medical image analysis:

• Object segmentation.
• Colocalization of structures.
• Probabilistic object tracking.
• Extraction of features & biomarkers.
• Spatio-temporal patterns.
• Medical image databases.

Vasculomics: Identification of anomalous vascularr brain patterns in pediatric patients. Automatic extraction of shape, size, and texture biomarkers.

Vascular tortuosity: Characterization of complex patterns using a tortuosity index and analysis of the connection with other relevant clinical biomarkers.

Characterization of cell cultures: Segmentation of soma and neurites from multi-channel fluorescence microscopy. Advanced colocalization methods.

Calcium imaging: Colocalization of molecular receptors and calcium dynamics in cardiac cells. Life microscopy images allow quantifying the extension, location and frequency of the spontaneous calcium release events that are known to be the underlying mechanism associated to arrhythmia and fibrillation.

Fiber classification in histopathological samples: Individual fibers are segmented and classified according to different levels in muscle samples from patients affected by a mitochondrial disease.

Deep learning: The use of convolutional neural networks provides excellent results in complex Image classification problems. A highly efficient network of convolutional filters extracts relevant features which are then classified using supervised classification methods. We apply advanced AI explainability techniques in order to provide clinically meaningful representations of the identified patterns.

Brain patterns: Analysis of a dynamic sequence of brain images to automatically identify anomalous vascular patterns.

Fetal ultrasound patterns: Identification of relevant structures and automatic assessment of the image quality.

Medicine and Clinical Engineering
https://creb.upc.edu/medicine-and-clinical-engineering/

Calibration and Dosimetry service:
The Calibration and Dosimetry Laboratory has been authorized by the National Accreditation Agency (ENAC) as Calibration Laboratory No. 23 according to the ISO 17025 standard for the following activities:

• Monitor calibration for environmental dosimetry, and for personal dosimetry. Quality control in x-ray radiodiagnostics and standard ionization chambers for x-rays, gamma radiation and beta radiation.
• Calibration of portable monitors for surface contamination.
• Calibration of high voltage measurement equipment for x-ray equipment.
• Irradiation of personal and environmental dosimeters.

Radiological protection service  
Radiation protection monitors and thermoluminescent dosimeters, to set up and classify work areas where staff are professionally exposed to ionizing radiation. To establish radiation risk assessment. To provide advice on radiological protection.
Optimization: design, construction, modification, and decommissioning of facilities with ionizing radiation.

Genetic, Neural and Pharma Engineering
https://creb.upc.edu/genetic-neural-and-pharma-engineering/

Recording and analysis of surface electroencaphalographic signals
Recording of EEG signals. Experiment design for cognitive tasks. Automatic artifact reduction in recordings. Spectral, time-frequency, and nonlinear analysis. Analysis of EEG/MEG activity in psychoactive drug studies, event-related potential studies, sleep studies, and neurological diseases (Epilepsy, Alzheimer, Parkinsons, Down, Schizophrenia, Multiple Sclerosis). EEG/MEG source localization. Connectivity assessment.

• 32 channel EEG amplifier (Mitsar, Russia).
• Software for designing protocols for stimulation and mental tasks to record event-related potentials (ePrime, Psychology Software Tools, USA).

Gamification and Simulation
https://creb.upc.edu/gamification-and-simulation/

Respiratory modeling
Prediction of respiratory system response under ventilatory stimuli. Development of an interactive computational tool (MV-Trainer) to simulate respiratory patient’s response under mechanical ventilation. Analysis of respiratory muscle activity by surface EMG signals.

• MATLAB software and specialized toolboxes.
• Computer server and storage units for calculations and backup systems.