Facilities
Injury Risk Assessment and Prevention (iRAP) Laboratory
The iRAP lab is a 1200 square foot Speed Engineering School laboratory located within the University of Louisville Medical School complex. The iRAP Lab includes office and work-spaces for students, along with an integral meeting space. The iRAP lab is equipped with a state of the art 13-camera motion tracking and analysis system (Motion Analysis Corp), MaxTraq and MaxMate motion analysis software, anthropomorphic test devices (test dummies – CRABI, 3 yr old Hybrid III, 6 yr old Hybrid III), CubePro 3D printer (3DSystems), materials testing machine (ADMET Materials Testing Systems), force platform, pressure-sensitive walkway, data acquisition hardware, and 8 high speed dual processor computers equipped with internet access and computer simulation software (Madymo, ATB3i, Visual Nastran 4D, Dynaman), solid modeling software (Solidworks), finite element analysis software (Ansys, Solidworks Motion), 3D CT and MRI imaging reconstruction software (Mimics), data acquisition software (LabView), database development software (FileMaker Pro, Access), along with standard Microsoft Office software.
J.B. Speed School of Engineering
The Speed School of Engineering is composed of seven scientific and technical Departments; Bioengineering, Mechanical Engineering, Computer Engineering and Computer Science, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Chemical Engineering having a 2005 enrollment of 1468 undergraduate and 590 graduate students. These Departments have come together, with the area’s strong medical community in their commitment to research and education in the multidisciplinary fields of bioengineering and rehabilitation engineering. A Rehabilitation Engineering Certificate program is currently being proposed within the Mechanical Engineering Department, with plans to train engineering and exercise physiology graduate students. The bioengineering and rehabilitation research activities of the Speed School faculty are multidisciplinary by nature and involve collaborations between medical and engineering faculty at the University of Louisville, as well as faculty at other nationally-renowned Universities. Research projects in these areas have focused on addressing clinically relevant problems through the development of technology and through clinical investigation employing engineering principles and techniques. Collectively, the engineering faculty have demonstrated productive high quality research activity in rehabilitation engineering and bioengineering as evidenced by current extramural funding through 36 federal grants and 12 industrial contracts, 30 undergraduate and 80 graduate students actively participating in these research projects, 22 US patents awarded or pending, and over 100 peer-reviewed publications in the last three years. A state of the art Rapid Prototyping Center (RPC), within the Speed School is available to RERC investigators. Equipped with a Selective Laser Sintering system, the Center is the hub of the RPC consortium, bringing together Fortune 500 Companies, engineering students and inventors. Through coursework, Speed engineering students are trained to use this state of the art equipment. The Mechanical Engineering Project Support Laboratory is a flexible facility used for the support of student design and research projects. Research prototypes, experimental test fixtures, and student design prototypes are fabricated in the facility. The facility is equipped with a lath, milling machine, band saw, drill press, MIG welder, TIG welder, thermal dynamic plasma cutter, along with miscellaneous power and hand tools.
Visit the J.B. Speed School of Engineering website
Frazier Rehab Institute
The Speed School of Engineering’s relationship with Frazier Rehab Institute (FRI) is an invaluable strategic partnership. Over the past decade, Frazier and the Speed School have focused on adding academic coursework and faculty to support this relationship. FRI is located within 100 yards of the Injury Risk Assessment and Prevention Laboratory. Frazier Rehab, founded in 1954, is a nonprofit, accredited, and licensed 135-bed physical rehabilitation hospital that has recently now undergone renovation and expansion. FRI is a regional health care system dedicated entirely to rehabilitation medicine. Frazier Rehab Institute offers services for spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, cardiopulmonary rehab, stroke rehab, orthopedic rehab, movement disorders, neuropsychological testing, a Parkinson’s Center, an outpatient program, aquatic therapy, art therapy, occupational therapy, voice and swallowing disorders, a pain management program, a return-to-work program, a return-to-driving program, animal-assisted therapy, speech and language therapy, sports medicine, mobile health screening services, and home nursing care. Frazier promotes wellness, prevention, and rehabilitation at 20 outpatient rehab sites in area shopping malls so that Louisville citizens can have access to physical rehab for sports injuries and orthopedic injuries.