Lung Phantom

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Lung Phantom

• Presented by Dr Nick Mallinson
• Research Manager, Warwick IMRC
• 26th March 2009

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Healthcare Research at the University of Warwick

• Several departments and research centres are
  active individually or in multi-departmental
  research for example
• WMS Biological Sciences clinical research
• WMG WBS processes and policy
• WMG, SoE Chemistry materials novel
  technology
• Warwick IMRC devotes around 50 of its funds to
  healthcare projects

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Warwick IMRC

• Funds multi-disciplinary projects
• on intelligent and eco-friendly
• vehicles and next generation
• healthcare with researchers drawn
• from
• School of Engineering
• Warwick Manufacturing Group
• Civil Mechanical
• Electrical Electronic
• Warwick Business School
• Warwick HRI
• Chemistry
• Psychology
• Warwick Medical School
• Biological Sciences

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WIMRCs Healthcare Management Theme

• Research to identify sustainable change
  management, staff training and knowledge
  management solutions
• Serious games for training and education
• Implementation of lean principles in healthcare
• Collection of best practice in a user
  accessible knowledge management system

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WIMRCs Healthcare Technology Theme

• The application of existing and novel
  manufacturing technology processes to
  healthcare
• Robotics for surgery and rehabilitation
• Lasers for bone ablation (e.g. hip surgery)
• Cavitation for destruction of stones in the body
• Virtual reality for surgical training
• Experiential engineering for the design of
  patient friendly environments
• Bio-materials/rapid manufacturing for implants
• Optical Diagnostics

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Example of Warwicks Healthcare Activities

• Several issues with current CT scanners
• Scanners do not provide real values of tissue
  density
• The accuracy across the scanning volume is
  variable
• Different makes of CT scanner produce different
  scan results

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Present Approach

• The CT scan shows a cross section of a male
  torso laying face up.
• The lungs can be seen as well as three circular
  calibrated electron density rods strapped to the
  patients front, which allow lung density to be
  estimated.

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From Concept to New Solution

• Dr David Parr, Consultant Respiratory Physician
  at UCHW identified the need for an improved
  calibration tool but was unsure how to realise
  it.
• Researchers at WMG, led by Prof Ken Young,
  defined a model that could be manufactured from
  carefully chosen plastic materials.

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The Body

• Gamex Solid Water with a density of 1.0 was
  used to make a dummy cross section of the human
  chest, with eight cylinders of known density
  located into the Gamex.

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Synthetic Lung Structure

• The eight cavities in the Gamex are filled with a
  composite material representative of lung tissue.
  The basic structure was created by Dr Greg
  Gibbons, a specialist in rapid prototyping.
• CAD data representing a pair of human lungs was
  obtained from a CT scan provided by Warwick
  Medical School. Core sections 58mm in diameter
  and 58mm long were extracted using Magics
  software and low, medium and high density
  sections were identified.
• The core structures were then manufactured on an
  EOSP380i laser sintering machine using PA2200
  polyamide-12 polymer.

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Creating Calibration Samples of Known Lung
Densities

• The open volume of the composite cores were
  filled with a stiff polyurethane expanding foam.
• Three variations of each part were manufactured
  using different foam densities (obtained by
  mixing the PU foam with 0, 5 and 10 wt acetone
  prior to casting).
• After foam setting, the excess evolved foam was
  separated from the cores. The cores were then
  fitted into the solid-water support.

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Lung Phantom Assembly

• The Gamex is sandwiched between two end plates of
  acrylic Perspex secured by nylon bolts (which
  have a density similar to rib bone).

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CT Scan of Lung Phantom
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Current Situation

• The time scale from initial discussions to the
  completion of a clinical trials prototype was
  less than 10 weeks.
• Early results are very promising and an improved
  second prototype is now undergoing trials at
  UHCW.

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Further Details

• Please contact Prof Ken Young on
• 024 7652 2764
• or via email at
• k.w.young_at_warwick.ac.uk