CNS Core: Small: Reconfigurable Intrabody Network for Therapeutics (RIBNeT)

由于人口老龄化和发展中国家日益严重的空气、水和食品污染，慢性病在世界范围内迅速增加。最近，新兴的植入式和可穿戴医疗设备为慢性疾病的持续监测和自动诊断带来了新的见解。为了通过医疗设备有效地管理慢性疾病，本研究项目探索了一种强大的、可重构的体内治疗网络的设计，这种网络可以收集自己的能量。从此我们称其为可重构体内治疗网络或RIBNeT。由于医疗需求决定了节点的位置和功能，RIBNeT协调了身体物理上分开部分的两种类型节点的操作——体内（能量）收集节点和体内治疗节点。该提案的关键智力价值在于，从根据医疗需求建立和运营小型治疗网络的角度出发，为RIBNeT探索了一种截然不同的能量传输和数据通信方式。基于适用于体内环境的磁感应通信（MIC）技术，对能量在全身的收集和传输进行了建模和测试。单个体内节点（OBN）增加了体内的能量可用性，以实现RIBNeTs的持续长期运行。该项目还探讨了OBN给RIBNeT带来的挑战，并设计了解决这些挑战的方法。特别是，它设计了轻量级机制，通过内部收集和OBN来监控和协同优化能量输送，并探索了在OBN移除时使操作更加稳健的方法。为了最大限度地减少能源使用，RIBNeT最大限度地增加了节点睡眠的机会，最大限度地减少了节点间协调的需要，同时仍然允许紧急传输和减轻各种传输之间的干扰。为了处理组合能量传输和通信，该项目探索了多段天线和集成在天线中的薄膜MEMS能量收集器的设计。我们制造集成能量传递和通信的电路板，并使用离体动物组织和人体受试者进行测试。总的来说，该项目预计将为用于治疗的高性能可重构体内网络（RIBNeT）的商业开发铺平道路。该项目还将整合跨学科（计算机科学、电气工程和生物学）学生教育中的科学发现和发现。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Chronic diseases are on a rapid rise throughout the world due to the growing aging population and increasing air, water, and food pollution in developing countries. Recently, emerging implantable and wearable medical devices have led to new insights in continuous monitoring and automated diagnosis for chronic diseases. To effectively manage chronic diseases through medical devices, this research project explores the design of robust and reconfigurable intrabody therapeutic networks that harvest their own energy. We henceforth call it Reconfigurable Intrabody Network for Therapeutics or RIBNeT. Since the medical needs dictate the location and functions of nodes, the RIBNeT coordinates the operation of two types of nodes in physically separate portions of the body - the intrabody (energy) harvesting nodes and the intrabody therapeutic nodes. The key intellectual merit of the proposal is in exploring a radically different landscape of energy transfer and data communication for RIBNeT from the perspective of building and operating small therapeutic networks as dictated by medical needs. Based on the magnetic induction communications (MIC) technology that works well for the intrabody environment, the energy harvesting and transfer throughout the body are modeled and tested. A single on-body node (OBN) is augmented for energy availability inside the body to enable sustained long-term operation of RIBNeTs. The project also explores the challenges posed by OBN to the RIBNeT and devise ways of addressing them. In particular, it designs lightweight mechanisms to monitor and collaboratively optimize the energy delivery via internal harvesting and OBN, and explores ways of making the operation robust in the face of OBN removals. In order to minimize energy use, RIBNeT maximizes opportunities for the nodes to sleep and minimizes need for inter-node coordination, while still allowing for emergency transmissions and mitigation of interference between various transmissions. In order to handle combined energy transfer and communications, the project explores the design of multi-segment antennas and a thin film-based MEMS energy harvester integrated into antennas. We build circuit boards for integrated energy transfer and communications and test them using ex vivo animal tissue and human subjects. Overall, the project is expected to pave the way for the commercial development of highly capable reconfigurable intrabody networks for therapeutics (RIBNeT). This project will also integrate the scientific findings and discoveries in education for students across disciplines (Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, and Biology).This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.