Research Associate in Advanced Design Engineering

Salary: SP17-SP21 on Research---London.pdf (imperial.ac.uk) scale

Job Summary

Applicants are invited for a research position in the Dyson School of Design Engineering to join an exciting and impactful multi-institution research project; titled Overcoming craniofacial abnormalities: Establishing a digital mass customisation design-through-manufacture pipeline for facemasks for children using non-invasive ventilation (NIV).

NIV is a treatment to aid breathing, which involves a mask connected to a machine which supports a user breathing in and out. NIV significantly improves quality of life and life expectancy, as well as reducing both hospital admissions and days spent in hospital. Children are at greater risk of not finding adequate fitting NIV masks as there are fewer children’s models. A lot of patients have craniofacial problems making it harder to find an adequately fitting mask. Finding appropriate fitting facemasks is challenging and “off the shelf” NIV masks are unsuitable due to poor fit which leads to non-compliance due to discomfort, where prolonged skin contact can lead to skin trauma creating pressure sores. Failure to find an effective non-invasive solution can necessitate progression to invasive ventilation. This can lead to serious problems with airway occlusion, respiratory infection and speech development.

The aim of this project is to remove the current dependence on manual driven design processes of custom NIV masks and demonstrate a fully automated design-through-manufacture pipeline, optimised for children and young people with and without facial anomalies. This will provide a cost viable route for the commercialisation and roll out to healthcare providers.

The candidate will be responsible for developing the NIV mask design and digital testing (e.g. writing custom CAD API codes), and physical prototyping. This project builds from prior IP in automated handling of 3D facial scans, template fitting and facemask design. The candidate will be trained in all prior work. They will be provided with the necessary space  and have access to state-of-the-art fabrication facilities through the Advanced Manufacturing Lab.

The post is funded by Action Medical Research and Life Arc. It is a multi-university, multi-disciplinary project with large industrial support. The holder will engage with a broad team across numerous scientific disciplines, present and communicate their work within this network and beyond at international conferences.

Duties and responsibilities

• Perform research tasks aimed at developing automated design-through-manufacture pipelines of NIV masks
• Write original research papers and submit them for publication in peer-reviewed international journals. Disseminate the results of the research by attending international conferences. 
• Regularly compile technical reports and presentations; attend all the project meetings and complete the required training. 
• Promote the work of the group at academic conferences 
• Work cooperatively with project collaborators and industrial partners.

Essential requirements

• A 2:1 undergraduate degree in Design Engineering or a related subject or an MSc postgraduate qualification in one of these subjects with a Distinction grade; or equivalent
• Excellent communication skills
• Ability to organise and prioritise work to meet deadlines
• A strong track record, or interest in automated product design, or medical device design, or additive manufacture is a must. 
• Working in a research environment and good practice in research  
• A keen interest and desire to work in scientific research
• Publication in relevant and refereed journals  
• Practical experience in using general-purpose programming languages

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