Even though 2013 is still only a few days old, it’s never too late to begin planning for this year’s biomechanics conference, which will be held in September. In order to get everything in order by then, the planning must be done in stages. Roughly 150 attendees are expected, but a student symposium will precede the conference for the fourth consecutive year. And we are currently in the process of purchasing advertising materials to display at prominent research institutions around the country, beginning in May.

At this time, we are still choosing among different vendors, but one company we may possibly look into is Hi Tex Advertising. Their site says they’ve been in business since 1987, and their inventory seems to include a number of options when it comes to pennants, which we’ll use in conjunction with other materials to get the word out. One idea we had was to fly feather flags on different college campuses, assuming we get the permission of schools first, of course. The idea is to have these flags flutter in the wind around campus so they stick out more.

What do you guys think? Ideas?

Stay tuned to the blog for more, because we’ll roll out more details as September nears.

Bio mechanics is a scientific discipline that deals with the application of mechanical principles in biological systems, including humans, plants, animals, organs and cells. This field of study is closely related to engineering, and it uses engineering sciences, such as material sciences, Newtonian mechanics, dynamics, kinematics, structural analysis, mechanism analysis, and continuum mechanics, to analyze biological systems. Other engineering techniques that play a prominent role in biomechanics include experimental measurements, computer simulation, numerical methods and modeling.

Biomechanics emerged as a field of study in its own right during the early 1970s. It is considered to be a sub-discipline of kinesiology, a field of science that is concerned with the application of mechanics in animate motion. Its main branches include:

1. Sports biomechanics

Sports biomechanics examines how principles of mechanics can be applied to boost athletic performance and minimize sport injuries. Researchers use elements of mechanical engineering such as force platforms, numerical methods, digital filtering, strain gauges and surface electromyography (EMG) to gain greater insights into joint, skeletal and muscular actions of the body in the execution of different tasks techniques and/or skills. This knowledge is utilized in enhancing sport’s performance, injury prevention, rehabilitation, and sports mastery.

2. Continuum biomechanics

Continuum biomechanics involves the mechanical analysis of biofluids and biomaterials. The mechanical characteristics of these materials depend on physical phenomena that occur in a hierarchical structure, from the microscopic molecules to the large tissues and organs. This field of study is spurred by the need to understand how the entire structure works.

3. Bio-fluid mechanics

This branch of biomechanics examines the flow of biofluids, especially blood. Researchers use mathematical models to understand how the blood flows through the vessels.

4. Biotribology

Biotribology is the study of contact mechanics and tribology in biological systems, including the analysis of the effects of wear, lubrication as well as friction. The main aspects of study include joints, hips and knees. The knowledge can be used to determine the lubrication effects of the synovial fluid or the wear performance of an implant.

5. Comparative biomechanics

Researchers apply the principles of biomechanics to nonhuman biological systems to gain a better understanding of human movements, or the ecology, adaptations and the functions of those systems.

6. Plant biomechanics

Plant biomechanics is a sub-field of biomechanics that deals with the study of structure and functions of plants as well as plant organs.

Careers in Biomechanics

Biomechanics work in many different disciplines and fields of application. Being both basic and applied science, biomechanics has many sub-fields that you can pursue. They include:

- Sports biomechanics
- Allometry
- Rehabilitation
- Implant medicine, prosthesis and orthotics
- Occupational biomechanics
- Human factors engineering
- Ergonomy
- Cardiovascular biomechanics
- Musculoskeletal and orthopedic biomechanics
- Soft body dynamics

As a biomechanics specialist, you can easily find work in research labs, rehabilitation clinics, fitness industry and industries. Biomechanics who work in research environments are mostly involved in gait analysis, research and testing of athletes, as well as research and development of man-machine interfaces. In sports companies, biomechanics undertake research and design of different types of sports accessories. Like other reaserch positions, biomechanics is highly lucrative and you can realise a well-paying and fulfilling career in this field.

Forensic biomechanics is an analytical method that is employed to make a presentation in a court of law that helps to reconstruct the mechanism of an injury and is followed by comparing the risk of the mechanism and the tolerance of injury by the individual. This field of science is growing in popularity in line with the field of biomechanics which is seeing growth and maturity. Forensic biomechanics applies biomechanical principles to answer questions that occur in civil and criminal legal cases.

Mechanics is the science that deals with how objects react when loaded with forces. The forces can act to push, pull, curl, shear, twist, or result in any other reaction. The reaction itself may be of a passive nature that results in a static deformation or a dynamic movement. The object may also get impaired due to the action of the forces. Biomechanics is the application of this science to the biological objects including the human body.

Whereas a pure biomechanical engineer would work on the human response in a sub-gravity environment, stresses and injuries in sports and martial arts, combat conditions, environmental insults on the body, etc., forensics biomechanics experts work to explore the use of biomedical techniques to form models of events that cause impact injuries and subsequently determine the intent of the injury and its method. Experts use this science to study the competing claims and conflicting stories in cases that involve personal injury, criminal acts and wrongful death to arrive at a complete understanding of the mechanisms of the injury caused and determine who was at fault.

An impact injury may cause a failure of an anatomic structure. In some cases, the injuries are obvious and no disputes arise. An example can be a fractured hip from a fall. In other cases, however, it may be confusing whether or not a traumatic event caused an injury. One example would be: the herniated disc in the neck could have occurred due to spinal arthritis connected to aging or a low speed rear end collision of the vehicle.
Forensics biomechanics adopts the following methodology to establish findings about a case.

The risk due to an injury is predicted by forensics biomechanics experts by studying the injury causation, how the injury can be quantitatively characterized, and lastly how the quantitative assessments of the injury can be matched to the mechanical forces that produce them in the first place.

Injury causation is decided by the clinicians based on the history of the event that occurred as narrated by the injured patient. This helps to identify the relationship between the event that took place and the onset of symptoms. It is important to note at this point that injury is different from disease and is determined in the way the symptoms are developed after an event of injury or exposure.

Injury scaling is a method of quantitatively describing injuries. Anatomic injury scales are used for the purpose. It is used to describe the severity of injuries throughout the body. The Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) is frequently used. Though initially developed in the mid 1960s for traumatic injuries caused by vehicle collisions, it is now used to scale a variety of injuries. It assigns a severity code and a corresponding fatality range in terms of percentage. Higher AIS levels are indicative of an increased ‘threat to life’. Two other systems called the Maximum AIS and the Injury Severity Score are designed to assess the effects of multiple injuries.
The Factor of Risk makes use of the ratio between the loads acting on an anatomic structure and its load carrying capacity (i.e., applied force/ injury force).

Injury risk functions are statistical functions that define the relationships between the probability that an injury can occur and a specific parameter that may be the age of the subject, load at an anatomic region, etc.

Career in Biomechanics: What is Available for You?

Biomechanics refers to the study of how the human body moves. When you perform an activity, your body has to coordinate the movement of several muscle groups. The muscles contract and relax so that the bones and joints move collectively. Biomechanics graduates have different career paths they can follow to apply their knowledge. These are discussed in this article.
Careers in medical field

As a biomechanical engineer, you can work in the medical field and specialize in the mechanics of body cells and tissues. Engineers in biomechanics can fabricate tissues that will be applied in preventive medicine to treat diseases.

These engineers work in the medical field to design and also monitor implants and other devices that will be useful in cardiovascular diseases. When you decide on a career path in medical biomechanics, you can specialize in soft tissue mechanics, cell and tissue biomechanics and the field of speech, hearing and balance.
Careers in rehabilitation

Many people with defects in motor function need corrective devices to help mitigate the disorder. As a specialist in this field, you will be able to undertake research and development in neuromuscular and sensory systems in the body so that you can come up with innovative approaches to treat the injuries.

The engineer will use robotics to help them correct the disabilities in the upper body and the lower body. Patients with problems in speech can receive therapy for their condition using approaches which have been developed by biomechanical engineers.

Careers in Sports

As a graduate in biomechanics, you can specialize in study of how the law of physics the way it applies to sports and other physical activities. Research in Biomechanics can help athletes and other people participating in physical activities to improve the appearance through application of mechanical principles.

Sports biomechanics involves analyzing the body functions so that they can discover the various ways to increase their athletic performance. This will be aimed at reducing the occurrence of injuries because they can be avoided by ensuring that the body is functioning in the correct way.

These principles that have been applied in sports have been worked on by undertaking extensive research and performing clinical studies that ensure that the procedure will be safe and effective without causing more injury.
As a biomechanics graduate, you will be approached by many sports teams, universities and research teams to work with them to come up with better ways for athletes to perform.
Career considerations

As a graduate interested in the career of biomechanics, you can start off the career by starting in different levels.

Entry level work will enable you to perform clinical research and development of innovative approaches. As an individual with an advanced degree, you can work at a supervisory level or as a lecturer in a college or university in this field.

You can also specialize in this field by selecting an area that deals with working with artificial joints, sports injury, skeletal development, implants and movement of muscles and other body parts. You can also work to analyse the strength of an individual so that you decide whether they are suitable for a particular job.

The types of jobs in the biomechanics will depend on your experience as well as the degree that you have attained.

Bio mechanical engineering can be described as a sub discipline in bio engineering which applies mechanical engineering practices to systems of biology. It comes from discipline in biomechanics. Bio mechanical engineering can also be defined as a bio medical engineering branch which uses principles of mechanical engineering in health and medical problems and related issues.For example, bio medical engineers or bio mechanical engineers work to come up with prostheses which they use to replace the missing body parts in patients.

Bio mechanical engineers normally play a major role in producing and developing many of the modern day products that we use.This ranges from textiles, food, plastics to advanced pharmaceuticals.This field can partly either be chemical engineering or biological engineering but it normally entail;s a combination of both two. This field is greatly growing by the day and advances and new opportunities are being made and the opening up of genetics and biotechnology engineering is becoming more and more important in industries. If one has an analytical mind and a great aptitude for science, they can consider engaging in biomechanical engineering.
How To Be A Bio Mechanical Engineer.

You need to prepare in advance for a job or career in the engineering or science field while still in high school. A degree in bio mechanical engineering requires a strong background in chemistry and mathematics.In addition one requires good communication skills and writing skills since the bio mechanical engineering field also involves supervisory and management roles and positions.

Take a complete degree in bio engineering. May universities and colleges offer undergraduate degree programs in bio mechanical engineering for students who are interested in future careers in that field.The courses in bio engineering programs normally include chemistry, biology, physics, mathematics and other engineering fundamentals A student can pursue a masters degree in engineering and also advance in doctorate degree program.The more advanced the degree the more the opportunities, especially for professionals who have specialised in a specific filed in the bio mechanical engineering field.

Once you have attained your degree, you need to qualify and become an intern in a bio mechanical engineering field by passing and practising engineering fundamentals in the examination which is offered. An internship normally helps the new graduates gain work experience and knowledge in the engineering field. The experience gained will qualify you for State license to be professional engineer. The credentials gained also enhance your chances and opportunities for landing a job in the bio mechanical engineering field.

All engineers who intend to offer their services to general public require a professional engineering credential. This credentials also show employers that the bio mechanical engineers have the required knowledge and skills of a bio mechanical engineer of the State.

All candidates should pass the practice and principles tests and examinations in the bio mechanical engineering field so as to qualify for the state license. Once you attain the credential as a professional bio engineer, you can start offering your services to public.

Biomechanics is defined as the study related to the structure as well as function of biological systems of animals, humans, plants, cells and organs using the methods of engineering mechanics. The term biomechanics was first introduced in early 1970s to describe the application of mechanics to medical and biological systems.

A group consisting of 53 scientists as well as clinicians founded the American Society of Biomechanics (ASB) in 1977 though a number of regional as well as national associations such as the American College of Sports Medicine, the Orthopedic Research Society and the American Society for Mechanical Engineers existed. These associations assigned portions of their meetings regularly or occasionally to biomechanics. However, such meetings are mostly attended by people who belonged to the parent organization. Therefore, these meetings did not present an opportunity for beneficial interaction between people working in varied fields of application of biomechanics. It was to cater to this need that the ASB was formed.

ASB’s Mission

The professed mission of ASB is to foster and encourage biomechanists to exchange information and ideas, irrespective of the disciplines as well as the fields of application they are involved in. They may be working in fields such as health or biological sciences, exercise/sports science, ergonomics/human factors, engineering/applied science, etc. ASB thus aims to facilitate development in the field of biomechanics not only as a basic science but also as an applied science.

ASB Membership Types

The three individual memberships offered by the ASB are Student, Regular and Emeritus. On certain selected individual members, the ASB can bestow Fellow status. In addition, the ASB offers corporate membership in three levels: Sustaining, Supporting, Partner.

Individual Membership – Student

The criteria to be satisfied for obtaining this individual membership are as follows:
The individual must have a student status.The student must establish contributions made or the intent to make contributions to the Society. The student can provide as proof his/her attendance at annual meetings of ASB, regional meetings of ASB, other conferences related to biomechanics, etc.

Individual Membership – Regular

The criteria to be satisfied for obtaining regular individual membership in ASB are:
Individual seeking this type of individual membership must establish expertise in biomechanics field through scientific articles published by him/her. The individual must establish contributions made or the intent to make contributions to the Society through attendance at annual meeting of ASB, regional meetings of ASB, other conferences related to biomechanics, etc. Individual who are not students and post-docs must apply for regular membership.

Individual Membership – Emeritus

This type of individual membership is reserved for members who have a long-standing association with the Society and those who have contributed substantially. The emeritus membership is bestowed on such individual members by the Executive Board.

Fellow Status

Fellow status does not refer to a type of membership. It is bestowed on select members in recognition of exceptional professional achievement as well as service and to encourage them to continue to serve the society as a leader. A Fellow must nominate prospective Fellows and the status will be bestowed on him/her if approved by ASB executive board’s two-thirds vote.

Corporate Membership

The annual membership fee to be paid as a Sustaining member is $4,000. However, the number of Sustaining memberships is limited to three. Whereas the annual fee payable by a Supporting member is $2000, a Partner member is required to pay $1,000 every year.