Implantable Fetal Pacemaker Project

Research Assistant
Internship Position
September 2011 – July 2012

Introduction
This was a biomedical research project led by Dr. Gerald Loeb at the University of Southern California Medical Device Development Facility (USC MDDF). I was under the mentorship of graduate student Li Zhou.

Project Scope
The project was in its second year of development. Most of the mechanical designs and some electronic designs were finalized by this time. Further development on the electrical design focused on component selection to optimize the pulse discharge output within the constraints of the analog circuit provided.

Project Constraints
– Pulse rate must be within 60 Hz (60 bpm)

Tasks and Roles
Given the existing circuit diagram, find the optimal values of resistors R1 and R2 that fulfill the project constraints.

– Used PSpice to model circuit simulations
– Constructed breadboard prototype to validate circuit behavior

More Information
MDDF Project Website
Featured Article
MDDF Team Members
Project Design Publication
Official Patent Document (U.S. 0088221)