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Interfacing anatomically conformal electronic components, such as sensors, with biology is central to the creation of next-generation wearable systems for health care and human augmentation applications. Thus, there is a need to establish computer-aided design and manufacturing methods for producing personalized anatomically conformal systems, such as wearable devices and human-machine interfaces (HMIs). Here, we show that a three-dimensional (3D) scanning and 3D printing process enabled the design and fabrication of a sensor-integrated anatomical human-machine interface (AHMI) in the form of personalized prosthetic hands that contain anatomically conformal electrode arrays for children affected by amniotic band syndrome, a common birth defect. A methodology for identifying optimal scanning parameters was identified based on local and global metrics of registered point cloud data quality. This method identified an optimal rotational angle step size between adjacent 3D scans. The sensitivity of the optimization process to variations in organic shape (i.e., geometry) was examined by testing other anatomical structures, including a foot, an ear, and a porcine kidney. We found that personalization of the prosthetic interface increased the tissue-prosthesis contact area by 408% relative to the non-personalized devices. Conformal 3D printing of carbon nanotube-based polymer inks across the personalized AHMI facilitated the integration of electronic components, specifically, conformal sensor arrays for measuring the pressure distribution across the AHMI (i.e., the tissue-prosthesis interface). We found that the pressure across the AHMI exhibited a non-uniform distribution and became redistributed upon activation of the prosthetic hand's grasping action. Overall, this work shows that the integration of 3D scanning and 3D printing processes offers the ability to design and fabricate wearable systems that contain sensor-integrated AHMIs.

Interfacing anatomically conformal electronic components, such as sensors, with biology is central to the creation of next-generation wearable systems for health care and human augmentation applications. Thus, there is a need to establish computer-aided design and manufacturing methods for producing personalized anatomically conformal systems, such as wearable devices and human-machine interfaces (HMIs). Here, we show that a three-dimensional (3D) scanning and 3D printing process enabled the design and fabrication of a sensor-integrated anatomical human-machine interface (AHMI) in the form of personalized prosthetic hands that contain anatomically conformal electrode arrays for children affected by amniotic band syndrome, a common birth defect. A methodology for identifying optimal scanning parameters was identified based on local and global metrics of registered point cloud data quality. This method identified an optimal rotational angle step size between adjacent 3D scans. The sensitivity of the optimization process to variations in organic shape (i.e., geometry) was examined by testing other anatomical structures, including a foot, an ear, and a porcine kidney. We found that personalization of the prosthetic interface increased the tissue-prosthesis contact area by 408% relative to the non-personalized devices. Conformal 3D printing of carbon nanotube-based polymer inks across the personalized AHMI facilitated the integration of electronic components, specifically, conformal sensor arrays for measuring the pressure distribution across the AHMI (i.e., the tissue-prosthesis interface). We found that the pressure across the AHMI exhibited a non-uniform distribution and became redistributed upon activation of the prosthetic hand's grasping action. Overall, this work shows that the integration of 3D scanning and 3D printing processes offers the ability to design and fabricate wearable systems that contain sensor-integrated AHMIs.

The advent of the World Wide Web has changed completely, the way companies communicate with customers. It is no longer a one way communication, the consumer is heard loud and clear through social media like Facebook, Twitter, review websites, blogs etc. Social media has turned the customer-company relationship on its head. Before doing business with a company, customers research about them using the social media. It is easier to trust one’s peers then to rely on company generated facts especially with multiple companies selling similar products. For high risk products, expert opinion becomes vital. The social media makes all this possible. In this age of consumer empowerment, is it feasible for a company to ignore the social media? Online networking sites provide to members a wide range of opportunity to generate, extend and find peers based on individual interests. As a result, while online members create user-generated content, there is a terrific opportunity for marketers to make use of the ever-increasing social networking population and target their offerings to customised groups. However social media advertising and electronic word of mouth publicity are not without risk since the company has no control over the information presented on such mediums. Also for medium and small businesses, the social media and electronic word of mouth publicity is the most efficient and cost effective tool for reaching out to potential customers. 50cycles.com is one such company and through my dissertation I endeavour to understand how the social media can be leveraged to reach a wider consumer base and build stronger bonds with the existing customers of the company. For this purpose consumers were contacted online to understand how influential are online review websites, blogs and other social media in determining the purchasing behaviour. At the same time the present communication channels of 50cycles.com were studied and accordingly suggestions for improvement were m

The advent of the World Wide Web has changed completely, the way companies communicate with customers. It is no longer a one way communication, the consumer is heard loud and clear through social media like Facebook, Twitter, review websites, blogs etc. Social media has turned the customer-company relationship on its head. Before doing business with a company, customers research about them using the social media. It is easier to trust one’s peers then to rely on company generated facts especially with multiple companies selling similar products. For high risk products, expert opinion becomes vital. The social media makes all this possible. In this age of consumer empowerment, is it feasible for a company to ignore the social media? Online networking sites provide to members a wide range of opportunity to generate, extend and find peers based on individual interests. As a result, while online members create user-generated content, there is a terrific opportunity for marketers to make use of the ever-increasing social networking population and target their offerings to customised groups. However social media advertising and electronic word of mouth publicity are not without risk since the company has no control over the information presented on such mediums. Also for medium and small businesses, the social media and electronic word of mouth publicity is the most efficient and cost effective tool for reaching out to potential customers. 50cycles.com is one such company and through my dissertation I endeavour to understand how the social media can be leveraged to reach a wider consumer base and build stronger bonds with the existing customers of the company. For this purpose consumers were contacted online to understand how influential are online review websites, blogs and other social media in determining the purchasing behaviour. At the same time the present communication channels of 50cycles.com were studied and accordingly suggestions for improvement were m

The advent of the World Wide Web has changed completely, the way companies communicate with customers. It is no longer a one way communication, the consumer is heard loud and clear through social media like Facebook, Twitter, review websites, blogs etc. Social media has turned the customer-company relationship on its head. Before doing business with a company, customers research about them using the social media. It is easier to trust one’s peers then to rely on company generated facts especially with multiple companies selling similar products. For high risk products, expert opinion becomes vital. The social media makes all this possible. In this age of consumer empowerment, is it feasible for a company to ignore the social media? Online networking sites provide to members a wide range of opportunity to generate, extend and find peers based on individual interests. As a result, while online members create user-generated content, there is a terrific opportunity for marketers to make use of the ever-increasing social networking population and target their offerings to customised groups. However social media advertising and electronic word of mouth publicity are not without risk since the company has no control over the information presented on such mediums. Also for medium and small businesses, the social media and electronic word of mouth publicity is the most efficient and cost effective tool for reaching out to potential customers. 50cycles.com is one such company and through my dissertation I endeavour to understand how the social media can be leveraged to reach a wider consumer base and build stronger bonds with the existing customers of the company. For this purpose consumers were contacted online to understand how influential are online review websites, blogs and other social media in determining the purchasing behaviour. At the same time the present communication channels of 50cycles.com were studied and accordingly suggestions for improvement were m

The advent of the World Wide Web has changed completely, the way companies communicate with customers. It is no longer a one way communication, the consumer is heard loud and clear through social media like Facebook, Twitter, review websites, blogs etc. Social media has turned the customer-company relationship on its head. Before doing business with a company, customers research about them using the social media. It is easier to trust one’s peers then to rely on company generated facts especially with multiple companies selling similar products. For high risk products, expert opinion becomes vital. The social media makes all this possible. In this age of consumer empowerment, is it feasible for a company to ignore the social media? Online networking sites provide to members a wide range of opportunity to generate, extend and find peers based on individual interests. As a result, while online members create user-generated content, there is a terrific opportunity for marketers to make use of the ever-increasing social networking population and target their offerings to customised groups. However social media advertising and electronic word of mouth publicity are not without risk since the company has no control over the information presented on such mediums. Also for medium and small businesses, the social media and electronic word of mouth publicity is the most efficient and cost effective tool for reaching out to potential customers. 50cycles.com is one such company and through my dissertation I endeavour to understand how the social media can be leveraged to reach a wider consumer base and build stronger bonds with the existing customers of the company. For this purpose consumers were contacted online to understand how influential are online review websites, blogs and other social media in determining the purchasing behaviour. At the same time the present communication channels of 50cycles.com were studied and accordingly suggestions for improvement were m