ZIN develops technologies to solve the medical and physiological problems of spaceflight and off-world surface exploration.  Our solutions deliver a broad range of novel, small, low-power, non-invasive and versatile instrumentation and hardware tailored to meet space mission-unique requirements.

 

As an example, long-term exposure to microgravity can cause fluids to shift within the human body and create symptoms of visual impairment in astronauts; using ZIN-developed technologies and processes, these symptoms - and their cause - are being investigated by observing the effects of cardiovascular and cerebral spinal fluid systems in the human body.

 

Through the integration of our science and engineering expertise, ZIN offers innovative approaches to space human health problem assessment and solution, that meet critical requirements for space missions, across both civil and commercial sectors.  ZIN has successfully supported human space flight activities for international government customers on multiple space platforms (Shuttle, MIR, ISS). These technologies are designed to meet mission needs while also having a clear overlap into clinical medicine, telemedicine and commercial applications. 

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Examples of our technologies and solutions across multiple areas include:

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Space Mission Physical Performance

 

• Monitoring and influencing the physiologic adaptation to weightlessness​​

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• Developing human performance, locomotion and mission task analogue facilities to assess partial and no-gravity environmental effects​

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• Monitoring and preventing bone and muscle loss through daily load stimulus measurement and dosage assessment​

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• Detecting changes in physiological parameters, including cardiovascular status

 

Medical Care

 

• Supporting medical care in space and on planetary surfaces

 

• Providing remote IV water purification capability

 

• Providing emergency room capability through remote monitoring and assessment

 

• Developing training and exercise countermeasure systems to maintain proficiency

 

• Commercializing telemedicine point-of-care systems and cellular-based architectures for various preventive and disease management protocols, e.g. hypertension, heart valve blood thinner management, DVT, and atrial-fibrillation blood thinner management.

 

Human Health Measurement and Analysis

 

• Assessing/preventing human health and performance risks through probabilistic risk assessments against mission tasks and adaptation

 

• Developing lumped-parameter models that predict the pressures and flow rates for various regions of the arterial and venous compartments throughout the body. 

 

• Developing computational modeling tools to help researchers define specific conditions and observe cardiovascular behavior.  The model is used to determine intracranial pressures, that inform NASA-developed eye models, and finite-element models of the optic nerve.

 

• Developed a research ultrasound machine (with GE Global Research) based upon the GE Healthcare Vivid E95. This machine allows the user access the full GE Vivid E95 system, and the second configuration allows for complete software access to the software beam forming and steering capability. 

 

• Developing bone finite-element models for NASA’s Digital Astronaut Project.  Through a combination of quantitative computed tomography, machine learning, and image processing, ZIN's software enables the creation of personalized bone finite-element models for NASA crew members. Furthermore, this is used to simulate bone loading and assess bone strength pre-, mid-, and post-flight.  This information is then used in NASA's models of bone chemistry, strength, and fracture risk to develop new exercise countermeasures, fitness metrics, and fracture mitigation strategies for crews on extended space missions.