Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA in Stuttgart, Germany have been working on translating hardware-in-the-loop development approaches, the same ones used extensively in the auto industry, to create new medical devices. For cars, the technique relies on using a computer to simulate varying situations that different hardware components may end up encountering. This happens throughout the development process, using a large set of tests, so there’s no waiting for the hardware to be created before important testing can begin and flaws are discovered early so fixes are made before a prototype is even built.
The team has demonstrated the approach for developing a cardiac assist device and have worked with the Dutch firm Soteria Medical to help it create control systems for a new biopsy product.