CENTRE FOR HEALTHCARE TECHNOLOGIES
RESEARCH BEYOND INNOVATION
Department of Biomedical Engineering
SSN College of Engineering, Chennai, India
ABOUT CHT
The Department of Biomedical Engineering coordinates CENTRE FOR HEALTHCARE TECHNOLOGIES – A multidisciplinary research initiative, which carries out world class research activities in the field of cognitive neuroscience(CN), medical signal and image processing(MS&IP), medical devices and instrumentation(MI) and bioengineering (BE).
The highlights of the department to carry out fruitful research under CHT include industry-institute interactions with eminent healthcare organizations like NIEPMD, Philips, Siemens,. The department has academic partnership with abroad Universities like Drexel University USA, Birmingham City University UK along with National institutions like Sri Ramachandra Medical College & Research Institute, Indian Biomedical Skill Consortium (IBSC) etc. Several consultancy projects in biomechanics, biomaterials and artificial organs have been carried out for National and overseas clients.
The Department has successfully conducted a retreat on “How to make India ready for 21st Century Medical device revolution?” with International and National delegates presenting their views on the topic.
VISION
To infuse research driven technology in healthcare and to provide impactful, reliable and affordable health through innovation.
MISSION
To achieve and uphold excellence in healthcare technology, the centre will
1. work on a research culture attributed to a strong team that ally all the domains of the centre toward achieving the vision.
2.voice-the-thought through neuroscience and empower humans through human computer interactions, alleviate human errors in healthcare reliability through biosignal and medical image processing, support professionals by affordable medical instrumentation and integrate innovative bioengineering research in rehabilitation, implant design and nanotechnology.
3.Emulsify real-time learning and innovation in the areas of national healthcare importance to make a societal impact on sustainable living and affordable healthcare.
4.Emphasise on collaboration and encourage intensive participation of different types of stakeholders to deliver impactful technological outputs.
5.to aid incubation of business ideas from the research team and students, and mentor them to develop as entrepreneurs.
OBJECTIVES
Develop novel diagnosing and training methodology for cognitive neurodevelopmental disorders such as Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia and Anxiety by adopting traditional as well as modern brain training platforms.
Integrate technology in identifying thoughts and to translate thoughts to actions through neuroscience research.
Develop and improve the quality of diagnosis and prognosis in diseases by advanced imaging and signal processing routines to improve healthcare.
Develop indigenous medical instruments to cater to the healthcare needs of the nation and to create an affordable health to all.
Develop low cost implants, prosthetic & assist devices and, novel & sustained drug delivery systems using modern bioengineering principles involving a complete interdisciplinary approach in technology, designing, characterization and manufacturing domains.
RESEARCH AREAS
Cognitive Neuroscience (CN)
Medical Signal and Image Processing (MS & IP)
Medical Devices and Instrumentation (MI)
Bioengineering (BE)
Domain | Topics |
CN, MS&IP, BE | Functional connectivity in learning and memory disorders, Speech imagery, Implant design and Prosthesis |
MS&IP, MI | EEG Analysis on various human participants, Carotid Ultrasound Imaging, Low Cost Dialysis Machine |
BE | Wound dressing material with impregnated nanoparticles and active compounds, Nanofibers for filtration, Nanoparticles for cancer therapy |
CN | Brain cognition, Music Perception |
Non Invasive device for Siddha Diagnosis | Development of NIRS for measurement of muscle oxygenation, EOG based Assist Devices, Development of Wearable system for Gait Analysis |
BE | Synthesis of hydrogel for tissue engineering applications, Mg based alloys and its biomedical applications |
Domain | Topics |
BE | Drug delivery systems, Nanocomposites, Enzyme Immobilization |
MS&IP | An automated pre transfusion test based on image processing |
MS&IP | External aid for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients, Assistive device for visually challenged - Smart cane |
MS&IP, MI | Six-lead EGG procurement belt for gastric oddities Sign Language Converter for Deaf and Dumb. Assisted Vision smart glasses for blind |
SOCIALLY RELEVANT PROJECTS
One of the key area of biomedical research is to develop some socially relevant works which will help, improve the life style of people. CHT has done many works which are socially relevant. List of some of the works are given below,
- Cerebral palsy head support
- Orthopedic belt using sodium acetate crystals
- Mass screening device for Osteoarthritis
- 3D printed Prosthetic limbs
- Non invasive glucose measurement
- Electronic nose for diagnosis of tuberculosis
- Assistive devices for differently abled
- Sign language converter using sEMG
- Braille for visually impaired
- Exoskeletons for assistive and rehabilitative purposes
- Low cost dialysis machine
- Noninvasive Jugular Venous pressure measurement
- Outdoor obstacle detection module to assist visually challenged
- Virtual reality for learning disorders
KNOW OUR LABS
The Department of Biomedical Engineering has well-equipped, state-of-the-art laboratories including the biomedical instrumentation lab, microbiology and biochemistry lab, diagnostic and therapeutic lab, to meet the requirements of Anna University to the fullest and to enable the students and the scholars to pursue research in-house. Apart from the curriculum based laboratories, the Centre for Healthcare Technologies of the Department has an exclusive research lab namely
MEMBERS
Dr. A. Kavitha is a distinguished Professor and Head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering at SSN College of Engineering, with over 24 years of teaching and 18 years of research experience. Her expertise spans Medical Image processing, Bio Signal processing, and Extended Reality, and she holds a Ph.D. in Biomedical Instrumentation from Anna University, Chennai. With over 60 publications and active involvement in professional societies, she leads interdisciplinary research initiatives and heads the Centre for Healthcare Technologies. Dr. Kavitha also directs the research team of RECYCL3D PLANET, a Canadian start-up focused on sustainable waste management.
Dr. A. Kavitha
Professor and HoD/BME
Head - CHT
Dr. Venkateswaran is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering and coordinator of the IQAC at Sri Sivasubramaniya Nadar College of Engineering, Chennai. He holds a PhD from Anna University and an MTech from Pondicherry University. With over 27 years in academia and 6 years in industry, his expertise includes Image and Signal Processing, Deep Learning, Machine Learning, Wireless Communication, and Photonics. He has authored over 120 papers and organized numerous faculty development programs. A dedicated IEEE member for over a decade, he chairs the IEEE Signal Processing Society, Madras Chapter, and has organized major conferences like WISPNET 2021. He has delivered invited talks and chaired sessions at notable events such as IEEE TENCON 2016 and the 53rd IETE Mid Term Symposium 2022. Dr. Venkateswaran was awarded Best Teacher for 2021-2022 and led a student team to win the Smart India Hackathon 2022.
Dr. N. Venkateswaran
Professor, BME
Dr. S. Pravin Kumar is an Associate Professor in Biomedical Engineering at SSN College of Engineering, bringing 18 years of combined teaching and research experience. With a Ph.D. in signal processing for EEG analysis and a post-doctoral stint in biomedical imaging, he spearheads research in computer vision and augmented reality. Dr. Pravinkumar is instrumental in establishing cutting-edge laboratories for advanced research at SSN. Currently, Dr. Pravin Kumar is at the forefront of cutting-edge research initiatives, focusing on computer vision, augmented reality, and Extended Reality (XR) solutions for various applications in healthcare. His research interests also extend to the integration of Internet of Things (IoT) and deep learning techniques for human and animal health monitoring.
Dr. S. Pravinkumar
Associate Professor, BME
Dr. Suganthi. L has completed her B.E in Electronics and Communication Engineering from National Engineering College, M.E in Communication and Networking from MIT Chennai. Doctoral studies on Takayasu’s Arteritis – Clinical Analysis, Modeling and Simulation towards Novel Diagnostic Technique from Indian Institute of Technology Madras.
Her areas of interests are Biomedical Instrumentation, Mathematical modelling of the human physiological system, Biomedical signal & Image processing and Embedded system.
Dr. L. Suganthi
Associate Professor, BME
Dr. Vijay Jeyakumar is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering with 12 years of teaching and research experience. He earned his Bachelor's in Electronics and Communication Engineering from Anna University in 2005 and a Master's in Medical Electronics from the College of Engineering, Guindy in 2008. He completed his PhD in Medical Informatics from Anna University in 2015, focusing on Medical Image Retrieval systems. He has secured funding from CSIR, NAAC, TANSCST, and ISTE for organizing workshops and seminars, and has received TNSCST grants for student projects from 2017 to 2019. Recognized in Marquis Who’s Who in the World (2016) and the International Biographical Centre, Cambridge (2017), Dr. Jeyakumar also received the Sri P K Das Memorial Best Faculty Award in 2018.
Dr. J. Vijay
Associate Professor, BME
Dr. Arun Karthick S is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering with 8.5 years of teaching and research experience. He earned his Bachelor's degree in Biomedical Engineering from Adhiyamaan Engineering College, Hosur in 2009, and his M.Tech. in Nanotechnology from Anna University, Coimbatore in 2011. He completed his PhD from Anna University, Chennai, focusing on NBC filtration, and later served as a Post-Doctoral Fellow under Padma Shri Prof. T. Pradeep at IIT Madras. Dr. Karthick's research interests include nanofibers and nanomaterials for filtration and biomedical applications, as well as plastic recycling. He is a member of IEEE, IEEE-EMBS, IEEE Councils on Nanotechnology, Sensors, and Superconductivity, and ISTE. He contributes to the Centre for Healthcare Technologies at SSN College of Engineering. His work includes 17 publications in international journals and 8 international conference presentations.
Dr. S. Arun Karthick
Associate Professor, BME
Dr. B. Geethanjali, an Associate Professor at SSN College of Engineering's Biomedical Engineering Department, brings a wealth of experience spanning 17 years. She holds a B.E. in Electronics and Communication from Madurai Kamaraj University, a PG Diploma in Medical Instrumentation from Bharathiar University, and earned gold medal in her M.Tech (Biomedical Engineering) and did Ph.D. from Vellore Institute of Technology. With a diverse background, Dr. Geethanjali has worked as a biomedical engineer in several multi-specialty hospitals, gaining hands-on experience in maintaining medical equipment. Prior to her current role, she served as a faculty member in biomedical engineering at Avinashilingam University. Her experience includes 3 years as a biomedical engineer and 14 years as a teaching faculty in biomedical engineering.
Dr. B. Geethanjali
Associate Professor, BME
Dr. K. Nirmala is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at SSN College of Engineering, with 17 years of teaching experience. She graduated with a degree in Bio-Medical Instrumentation Engineering from Avinashilingam Deemed University in 2000 and earned her M.Tech in Medical Electronics from Anna University in 2002, both with first-class honors. She received her Ph.D. from Anna University in 2018, specializing in Retinal fundus image analysis for glaucoma detection. Her research interests include image processing, diagnostic and therapeutic equipment, and biomedical instrumentation. Dr. Nirmala has published extensively in refereed journals and conferences and is actively involved in IEEE and ISTE. Currently, she is working on a research project funded by SSN Trust, developing a non-invasive portable system to estimate white blood cells from optical images of nail fold capillary circulation.
Dr. K. Nirmala
Associate Professor, BME
Dr. M. Dhanalakshmi is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering with 14 years of teaching experience. She earned her B.E. from St. Peter’s Engineering College, University of Madras in 2001, and her M.E. in Medical Electronics from Anna University, Chennai in 2006. She completed her Ph.D. in Speech Signal Processing from Anna University in 2021.
Dr. Dhanalakshmi has several publications in international journals and conferences. She is an IEEE member (ID: 92532450) and a recognized supervisor for Ph.D. and M.S. (by research) programs under the Faculty of Information and Communication Engineering at Anna University (Ref No. 4040080).
Dr. M. Dhanalakshmi
Associate Professor, BME
Dr. R. Subashini is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at SSN College of Engineering. She earned her Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of Madras, AC Tech campus, Chennai, and her M.Sc. in Biochemistry from Annamalai University, Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu.
During her Ph.D. studies, she was awarded a Senior Research Fellowship by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). Dr. R. Subashini is a recognized supervisor (Ref No. : 3170025) of Anna University for guiding PhD and M.S. (by research) under the faculty of Science and Humanities. She is guiding 2 full time scholars towards their PhD degree. Her area of research is Biochemical toxicology, Biomaterials, Bionanotechnology and molecular biology.
Dr. R. Subashini
Associate Professor, BME
Dr. R. Nithya is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering with 15 years of teaching experience. She completed her B.E. in Electronics and Instrumentation Engineering from Anna University in 2002 and her M.E. in Biomedical Engineering from the College of Engineering, Anna University in 2008, both with first-class honors. She earned her Ph.D. in Information and Communication Engineering from Anna University in 2021, focusing on the development of a decision support system for detecting retinal disorders. Her research interests include image processing, rehabilitation engineering, and assistive devices. Dr. Nithya has published extensively in refereed journals and conferences. Her ongoing research includes projects on prosthetic hand development and thermal image analysis for retinal disorders.
Dr. R. Nithya
Assistant Professor, BME
Dr. B. Divya is an Assistant Professor in Biomedical Engineering at SSN College of Engineering. She earned her Bachelor's degree from Rajiv Gandhi College of Engineering and Technology, Pondicherry, graduating as a university rank holder in 2009. Subsequently, she completed her Master's degree in biomedical engineering from Amrita School of Engineering, Coimbatore, securing the second position in overall performance in 2011. With a PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience, Dr. Divya's research interests encompass a wide array of cutting-edge topics including biosignal processing, machine learning, artificial neural networks, and medical image processing. These areas reflect her interdisciplinary approach and her dedication to exploring innovative solutions in the field.
Dr. B. Divya
Assistant Professor, BME
Dr. N. Punitha is anAssistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering. She completed her B.E. in Biomedical Engineering and M.E. in Medical Electronics from the College of Engineering, Guindy, Anna University, where she was awarded the Gold Medal for being the academic topper in 2015. She earned her Ph.D. from the Indian Institute of Technology Madras in 2019, focusing on the analysis of uterine electromyography signals associated with term and preterm contractions using nonlinear algorithms and machine learning techniques.
Dr. Punitha has also served as a Project Officer at IIT Madras for one and a half years. Her key research areas include biomedical signal processing, medical image processing, artificial intelligence, and machine learning.
Dr. N. Punitha
Assistant Professor, BME
Dr. S. Saranya is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering with around 10 years of teaching and research experience at Anna University, along with brief industry experience at Cognizant Technology Solutions Pvt. Ltd. She earned her B.E. in Biomedical Engineering in 2008, her M.E. in Medical Electronics in 2010, and her Ph.D. in Medical Electronics in 2021, all from Anna University. Dr. Saranya's Ph.D. research focused on biomedical signal processing and machine learning, specifically developing an EMG-based algorithm for muscle strength evaluation and functional assessment of musculoskeletal disorders. She is a recognized supervisor (Ref No. 4190032) from Anna University for guiding Ph.D. and M.S. (by research) candidates in Electronics and Communication Engineering. Her current research interests include biomedical signal processing, kinesiology and human movement science, musculoskeletal modeling, and machine learning.
Dr. S. Saranya
Assistant Professor, BME
Dr. S. Allwyn is an Assistant Professor in the field of biomedical engineering. He completed his B.E. in Biomedical Engineering from Udaya School of Engineering, Nagercoil, in 2012, and his M.E. in Medical Electronics from the College of Engineering, Guindy, Chennai, in 2015. Additionally, he holds an M.Sc. in Medical Sociology from Madras University (2019) and an M.S. (by Research) in Biosensors from IIT Madras. He earned his Ph.D. in Biomedical Devices from IIT Madras in 2023. Dr. Allwyn is a recognized supervisor (Ref. No: 4290035) at Anna University, where he guides Ph.D. and M.S. (by research) students in biomedical engineering. His research interests encompass fiber optic sensors, biosensors, medical instrumentation, and medical device development. He currently has vacancies to guide five full-time Ph.D. and M.S. (by research) scholars and welcomes research proposals focused on developing biomedical devices.
Dr. S. Allwyn
Assistant Professor, BME
INTERNSHIPS
CHT is offering internship opportunities to students from various universities. Totally five undergraduates from Drexel University have completed their internship at different labs of CHT.
Speech imagery
"As my first fime being abroad overseas, experience in India and with the research has been remarkably astonishing. I personally find the work I'm doinø to be amazing and immensely intriguing"
– Ashley, Drexel University, 2018
EXOSKELETON DESIGN
"The experience so far has been fantastic. I look forward to assisting this project as much as possible before the end of my research program."
-Amin Nadim, Drexel University, 2018
VIRTUAL REALITY FOR AUTISM
"They've all been very kind, helpful, and a pleasure to work with."
-Malena
Dr.ir. Gerwin Smit
Associate Professor, TUDELFT
Dr. R. Nithya,
Assistant Professor, SSN, BME
Dr. Mohamed Irfan Refai, Assistant Professor in AI, University of Twente
Ms. India Hoekman, MSc BME, TUDELFT
PROSTHETIC DESIGN
“Going abroad is a great way for expanding your horizons and stepping out of your comfort zone. So, when I stumbled upon an internship opportunity at the Biomedical Engineering (BME) department at SSN College, I thought, "Why not?" It turned out to be a fantastic chance to learn more about India (and about the meaning of my name), soak up a different culture, and dig deeper into the world of Biomedical Engineering. My internship focused on the iGrip prosthetic hand, which is made in India and is being sold and distributed all over the country. The aim of the internship was to start a research study about the usage of the prosthetic hand and gather user feedback. In the process, I picked up tons of insights from both the department and doing research. But the real eye-opener? Getting to know India beyond textbooks. You have different music, different food, and of course, a different language. It took some time to get used to, and I learned a lot from myself. But at the end of the three months, I had made some great friends, got to see India from such a different perspective, and it got a special place in my heart. I am very grateful that I was able to come to SSN and that I got such great guidance from Dr. Kavitha and Dr. Nithya. Their mentorship not only enriched my professional growth but also, together with my friends, played a pivotal role in making my experience at SSN College truly unforgettable”.
Ms. India Hoekman, MSc BME, TUDELFT, 2024
NOTABLE Projects
Contact
kavithaa@ssn.edu.in
social
Dr. A. Kavitha,
Professor and Head,
Department of Biomedical Engineering,
Centre for Healthcare Technologies,
SSN College of Engineering,
Chennai, India
Centre for Healthcare Technologies, Department of Biomedical Engineering, SSNCE