Biomechanics
Biomekanik

BMEN05F, 7.5 credits

Valid from: Autumn 2018
Decided by: Professor Thomas Johansson
Date of establishment: 2018-05-18

General Information

Division: Biomedical Engineering
Course type: Course given jointly for second and third cycle
The course is also given at second-cycle level with course code: BMEN05
Teaching language: English

Aim

The aim of the course is to widen the conceptions of mechanics to also include biological systems.

Goals

Knowledge and Understanding

For a passing grade the doctoral student must

• be familiar with the different organ systems of the human body and how they work together
• understand how systems of joints, e.g. the hip and the knee, works in mechanical sense
• understand how human locomotion can be modelled and analysed in using mechanical concepts
• understand how the building stones of the human body ( bone, cartilage, tendons, ligaments and muscles) can be described in mechanical terms
• be able to describe the prerequisites prosthesis and implants must fulfill in order to work mechanically in the human body

Competences and Skills

For a passing grade the doctoral student must

• be able to formulate and solve problems in biomechanics, both in statics and dynamics
• be able to make use of techniques in optimization to solve a problem in biomechanics
• be able to model human motions using commercial software

Judgement and Approach

For a passing grade the doctoral student must

• be able to estimate properties in strength of materials such as safety factor and mechanical lifetime of biological tissues
• be able to describle the quality of human motions
• be able to interpret and discuss information from literature in medicine

Course Contents

The architecture of the skeleton and the apparatus of locomotion are described as a mechanical system where the bones are coupled together in joints and the activity in the muscles control the movements.The human body is built up by different elements such as bone, articular cartilage, ligaments, tendons, muscles, blood and body fluids. These elements are described and modelled in the context described in earlier courses in mechanics and solid mechanics. Newton´s equations are applied on the different parts of the skeleton and concepts like constitutive equations are applied to biological material e.g. bone, where effects from mechanical loading on the inner structure are modelled

Course Literature

Nordin, M. & Frankel, V.: Basic Biomechanics of the Musculoskeletal System. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2001. ISBN 9780683302479.

Instruction Details

Types of instruction: Lectures, seminars, laboratory exercises, project

Examination Details

Examination formats: Written exam, oral exam, written assignments, seminars given by participants. Three written assignments are performed in groups of 2-3 students during the course. The assignments are reported in written reports and written feedback is given from the course coordinator. In the end of the course there is an individual, written, home exam
Grading scale: Failed, pass
Examiner:

Admission Details

Assumed prior knowledge: Basic courses in mathematics, mechanics and solid mechanics or engineering mechanics

Course Occasion Information

Contact and Other Information

Course coordinator: Ingrid Svensson <ingrid.svensson@bme.lth.se>
Web page: www.bme.lth.se