title: A mechanical simulator of cardiac wall kinematics.
abstract: Aim of this study is to develop a mechanical simulator (MS) reproducing cardiac wall kinematics [i.e., radial (R), longitudinal (L) and rotational (RT) motions] to test piezoelectric gyroscopic sensors (GS) that are able to measure cardiac torsion that has proved to be a sensitive index of cardiac performance. The MS consists of three brushless motors controlled by a dedicated software either separately or simultaneously reproducing the three main cardiac wall movements (R, L, RT) obtained by implementing different physiologic or pathologic velocity profiles derived from in vivo data. GS accuracy (max % error) was experimentally tested by connecting it to the MS driven in velocity in different working conditions [i.e., cardiac period (515-1030 ms), RT angle (4-16 degrees), GS axis inclination (0-90 degrees) with respect to the cardiac rotation axis]. The MS reproduced the tested velocity profiles well. The GS showed high accuracy in measuring both physiologic and pathologic RT velocity profiles, whereas they proved insensitive to R and L motions. GS axis inclination influenced measurements; however, it was possible to correct this taking the inclination angle cosine into account. The MS proved to be a useful tool to study cardiac wall kinematics and test GS reliability with a view to in vivo application.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Biological Structure Mechanics (LaBS), Structural Engineering Department, Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy. cutri@stru.polimi.it
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Cutrì
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bagnoli
authors.forename: Emanuela
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Marcelli
authors.forename: Federico
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Biondi
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cercenelli
authors.forename: Maria Laura
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Costantino
authors.forename: Gianni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Plicchi
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Fumero
mesh_terms: D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D009038:Motion; D009068:Movement; D012399:Rotation