Class of 2023 biomedical engineering students: Kristen Alexander, Robert Dillon, Natalie Crawford, Brianna Duswalt, Julia Kilroy, Alex Hemmat, Conor Landry, Dominic Oliveri, Brigid Protzmann, Stephanie Rodgers, and Cassi Ronan, along with biomedical graduate student Laia Vancells Lopez, represented Fairfield University’s School of Engineering at the 49th Annual Northeast Bioengineering Conference (NEBEC), held at Drexel University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

During the three-day conference, the Fairfield students showcased their biomedical device designs at the Senior Design Poster Competition in front of an audience of engineering students, industry professionals, and research leaders. The devices were developed during their year-long senior design project capstone course. This capstone course has students work in teams on advanced projects that emphasize engineering design with attention to design constraints and engineering standards. The overarching goal of this course is to transform engineering students to practicing engineers.

Protzmann, Ronan, Dillon, and Rodgers, under the direction of Biomedical Engineering Professor Susan Freudzon, PhD, presented their design for the Smart CPR Trainer. The trainer is a cardiopulmonary resuscitation device that evaluates CPR performance. The device utilizes an Arduino circuit board and ultrasonic sensor within a hollow CPR mannequin, allowing the team to collect data on the user's depth and frequency of chest compressions performed during CPR training. It also interfaces to a MATLAB app to display the user's quantitative metrics in real time.

“This allows the user to see if their chest compressions are meeting the proper depth and frequency according to the American Heart Association's standards for effective CPR,” explained Rodgers.

On winning first place, Rodgers said “It feels great to win first place! Our team works really well together and Dr. Freudzon is just the best project mentor. We all put in a lot of work to get to this point, so it is very exciting to have that show at the conference.” 

Another Fairfield team, made up of Duswalt, Crawford, and Alexander, also under the mentorship of Dr. Freudzon, won first place for their design of a laparoscopic surgery training dome. The design is “a suture training dome designed specifically to help medical students and surgeons practice their skills without the aid of supervisors. This will allow these students and surgeons to learn the basics of suturing and laparoscopic surgery in a more efficient manner,” Duswalt said.

Alexander added, “It allows surgeons and residents to gain experience practicing minimally invasive surgical skills and receive real-time feedback regarding force input and how that would translate to tissue damage on a human patient. As a team of all-female engineers, I’m proud of the differences we can make in the field while continuing to push boundaries for future generations of women in STEM.”

Following the poster presentations, the students had the opportunity to attend the career fair where they were able to network with biomedical device companies in the Northeast. 

On her experience, Ronan said, “I feel proud of our team for all of our hard work this year toward developing the Smart CPR Trainer. It feels rewarding and satisfying to know that our project is reaching a larger audience and is  considered to be a valuable device in the eyes of the judges.”