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4.1 SYLLABUS
EE 2024 BIOMEDICAL INSTRUMENTATION
1.

3001

PHYSIOLOGY AND TRANSDUCERS

Cell and its structure Action and resting Potential propagation of action potential
Sodium pump Nervous system CNS PNS Nerve cell Synapse Cardio
pulmonary system Physiology of heart and lungs Circulation and respiration
Transducers Different types Piezo-electric, ultrasonic, resistive, capacitive,
inductive transducers Selection criteria.
2.

ELECTRO PHYSIOLOGICAL MEASUREMENTS

Basic components of a biomedical system Electrodes Micro, needle and

surface electrodes Amplifiers Preamplifiers, differential amplifiers, chopper
amplifiers Isolation amplifier. ECG EEG EMG ERG Lead systems and
recording methods Typical waveforms.
3.

NON-ELECTRICAL PARAMETER MEASUREMENTS

Measurement of blood pressure Cardiac output Cardiac rate Heart sound

Respiratory rate Gas volume Flow rate of Co2, o2 in exhaust air - PH of blood,
ESR, GSR measurements Plethysmography.
4.

MEDICAL IMAGING AND PMS

X-ray machine - Radio graphic and fluoroscopic techniques Computer

tomography MRI Ultrasonography Endoscopy Thermography Different
types of biotelemetry systems and patient monitoring Electrical safety.
5.

ASSISTING AND THERAPEUTIC EQUIPMENTS

Pacemakers Defibrillators Ventilators Nerve and muscle stimulators

Diathermy Heart Lung machine Audio meters Dializers.
L = 45 Total = 45
TEXT BOOKS
1.

Leslie Cromwell, Fred J.Weibell, Erich A.Pfeiffer, Bio-Medical Instrumentation

and Measurements, II Edition, Pearson Education, 2002 / PHI.

2.

R.S.Khandpur, Handbook of Bio-Medical instrumentation, Tata McGraw Hill

Publishing Co Ltd., 2003.

REFERENCE BOOKS
1.

M.Arumugam, Bio-Medical Instrumentation, Anuradha Agencies, 2003.

2.

L.A. Geddes and L.E.Baker, Principles of Applied Bio-Medical Instrumentation,

John Wiley & Sons, 1975.

3.
4.

J.Webster, Medical Instrumentation, John Wiley & Sons, 1995.

C.Rajarao and S.K. Guha, Principles of Medical Electronics and Bio-medical
Instrumentation, Universities press (India) Ltd, Orient Longman ltd, 2000.
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4.2 SHORT QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

1. What is meant by cell?

The basic living unit of the body is cell. The function of organs and other structure
of the body is understood by cell organization.
2. Give the abbreviation form for RNA, DNA?
RNA Ribo Nucleic Acid DNADe- Oxy Nucleic Acid
3. What are resting and action potential & bio electric potential?
The membrane potential caused by the different concentration of ions is called
resting potential. It is caused by very rapid change of membrane permeability to sodium
ions followed by recovery period. The positive potential of the cell membrane during
excitation is called action potential. Certain systems of the body generate their own
monitoring signals conveying useful information about the functions they represent. Such
signals are bio electric potentials and are related to nerve conduction, brain activity, heart
beat etc.
4.What is meant by Resting Potential?
Equilibrium is reached with a potential difference across the membrane such that
negative on inside and positive on outside. This membrane potential caused by the different
concentration of irons is called Resting Potential.
5.What is meant by Action Potential?
Cell has a slightly positive potential on the inside due to imbalance of potassium
ions. This positive potential of the cell membrane during excitation is called Action
Potential and is about 20 mV.
6.Give any 4 factors to be considered when we design any medical Instrument?
Accuracy, Frequency Response, Linearity, S/N ratio, Stability, sensitivity
7.What is Electrode Potential?
The voltage developed at an electrode-electrolyte interface is known as Electrode
Potential.
8.What is the purpose of electrode paste?
The electrode paste decreases the impedence of the contact the artifacts resulting
from the movement of the electrode or patient.
9.Give the different types of electrodes?
Microelectrodes, Depth and needle electrodes, Surface electrodes

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10.Give the different types of Surface electrodes?
Metal Plate electrodes
Suction cup electrodes
Adhesive tape electrodes
Multi point electrodes
Floating electrodes
11.What is a Defibrillator?
A defibrillator is an electronic device that creates a sustained myocardial
depolarization of a patient s heart in order to stop ventricular fibrillation or artial
fibrillation.
12.What are the characteristics of a DC amplifier?
It may need balanced differential inputs giving a high common mode rejection ratio
(CMRR).It should have an extremely good thermal and long term stability.
13. Enumerate the merits and demerits of a dc amplifier?
It is easy to calibrate at low frequencies.
It is able to recover from an overload condition unlike its AC counterpart.
14. Define transducers.
Transducers are defined as a device which when actuated, transforms energy from
one form to another. Generally, any physical parameters is
converted into electrical form.
15.What are the 2 types of transducers?
Electrical and
Mechanical
16.Name the parameters that dictate the transducer capability
Linearity
Repeatability
Resolution and
Reliability
17.Define sensitivity
Sensitivity is defines as the electrical output per unit change in the physical
parameter. High sensitivity is generally desirable for a transducer.
18.Classify electrical transducers.
Active
Passive
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19.Name the 2 parts of a transducer
Sensing element
Transduction element
20.Mention the factors considered while selecting a transducer.
Operating range
Sensitivity
Frequency response & resonant frequency
Environmental compatibility
Minimum sensitivity
Accuracy
Usage and ruggedness
Electrical parameters
21.What is meant by POT?
POT is a resistive potentiometer used for the purpose of voltage division. It consists
for a resistive element provided with a sliding contact called as wiper.
22.Explain the working principle of a strain gauge.
Strain gauge works on the principal that the resistance of a conductor or a
semiconductor changes when strained. This property can be used for measurement of
displacement, force and pressure.
23.Name the different types of strain gauges.
Un-bonded metal strain gauge
Bonded metal wire strain gauge
Bonded metal foil strain gauge
Vacuum deposited thin metal film strain gauge
Sputter deposited thin metal strain gauge
Bonded semiconductor strain gauge
Diffused metal strain gauge
24.What is meant by rosette?
It is a combination of strain gauges to a single element strain gauge.
25.Give the 3 working principles of variable inductance transducers
Change of self inductance
Change of mutual inductance
Production of eddy currents.
26.Write notes on LVDT
It is the linear variable differential transformer which is used to translate
the linear motion into electrical signals. It consists of a single primary
winding and 2 secondary winding.

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27.List the advantages of LVDT
High range of displacement measurement
Friction & electrical isolation
Immunity from external effects
High I/p and high sensitivity
Ruggedness
Low hysterisis & low power consumption.
28.What is a digitizer?
It is a digital encoding transducer that enables a linear or rotary displacement to be
directly converted into digital form without intermediate forms of analog to digital (A/D)
conversion.
29. Classify the pacemakers
Fixed rate pacemakers.
Ventricular Synchronous pacemakers
Demand pacemakers
Atrial Synchronous pacemakers
30. Different methods of stimulation
External stimulation,Internal stimulation
31.Define electrode , what are the type of electrodes.
Devices that convert ionic potentials into electronic potentials are called electrodes.
There are three types of electrodes, They are Micro electrode Depth and needle electrode
Surface and needle electrode
35. Define neuron, nerve fibers.
The basic Units of the nervous system is the neuron. A bundle of individual nerve
fibers is called a nerve .A neuron is a single cell with a cell body, called soma, one or more
inputs fibers called dendrites and a long transmitting fiber called axon. Both axons and
dendrites are called nerve fibers.
36. What are parts of central nervous system?
It consists of 1010 neurons. The brain consists of cerebrum, cerebellum and
brainstem. Cerebrum consists of two hemispheres and there are divided into frontal lobe,
occipital lobe and temporal lobe. Cerebellum consists of two hemispheres. They regulated
the coordination of muscular movements.
37. Name the pars that contain peripheral nervous system.
The neve fibers outside the central nervous system called peripheral nerves. It
consists of motor and sensory nerves.

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38. Define circulatory system
It is a type of transport system. It helps in supplying the oxygen and digested food
to different parts of our body and removing CO2 from the blood. The heart is the center of
the circulatory system.
39.Define heart, lung?
Heart is a pumping organ which eats regularly and continuously for years. It beats
seventy times a minute at rest. Contraction is systole and relaxation is diastole.
40.Define circulation and respiration?
We can define from the engineering point of view, the circulation is a high
resistance circuit with a large pressure gradient between the arteries and veins The
exchange of any gases in any biological process is termed as respiration
41.What is mean by transducer?
It is a device which detects or senses the bio signal and converts it in to an electrical
signal for bio signal processing
42.Define strain gauge?
It is a electrical device which is used to measure stress or pressure in terms of strain
using the principle of change of resistively due to mechanical stress
43.How are transducer are classified?
They can be classified into different types based on the energy conversion,
application and so on. They are two types
Active transducer: A transducer that gives its output without the use of an
excitation voltage or modulation of a carrier signal is called an active transducer
Passive transducer: A transducer that gives its output using an excitation voltage
or modulation of a carrier signal is called a passive transducer. Generally the
active transducer converts a non- electrical energy into electrical energy and
converts an electrical into non electrical energy.

16 mark questions
UNIT I
PHYSIOLOGY AND TRANSDUCERS
1. Discuss in detail about action potential and resting potential.(16)
2. Explain with neat sketch anatomy and conducting system of heart. Also discuss cardio
vascular circulating system with block diagram. (16)
3. Explain with neat sketch anatomy and physiology of central nervous and peripheral
nervous system. (16)
4. Explain the process of propagation of electrical pulses along the axon with
relevant diagrams. (16)

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5. Draw diagrams illustrating the process of respiration and circulation. States the purpose
served by these two systems and explain the processes involved in the operation of these
two system. (16)
6. What are the requirements of a good physiological transducer and explain the operation
of any two types of physiological transducers with relevant sketches? (16)
7. Draw the structure of a living cell of a body and explain its constituents.(16)
UNIT II
ELECTRO PHYSIOLOGICAL MEASUREMENTS
1. Explain the various types of amplifiers listed below, with a neat circuit diagram.
i) differential amplifier
ii) chopper amplifier
iii) isolation amplifier (16)
2. Draw equivalent circuit of a biopotential electrode interface. Discuss in detail about
various types of biopotential electrodes. (16)
3. Describe in detail about unipolar and bipolar limb lead system used for measuring ECG
signal. (16)
4. Explain about a typical single channel ECG recorder with proper justification for the
inclusion of each block of the system and give the normal ECG wave pattern. (16)
5. Explain the working principle of a ECG machine with a neat block diagram. (16)
6. State the basic elements of electro cardiograph and explain the working of each of these.
What are the different ways in which ECG helps in providing medical care to patients? (16)
7. Design a simple medical preamplifier circuit and explain its action. Also
derive its
voltage gain. (16)
8. Write a short notes on
i) Micro electrodes
ii) Needle electrodes
iii) Surface electrodes (16)
9. With a neat block diagram, explain the working principle of EEG machine. (16)
10. With a neat diagram, explain the working principle of EMG. (16)
11. With a neat diagram, explain the working principle of ERG. (16)
12. Name three basic types of biopotential electrodes and explain their
applications. (16)
UNIT III
NON-ELECTRICAL PARAMETER MEASUREMENTS
1. i) Explain the working principle of a electromagnetic type blood flow meter.
ii) Define cardiac output. Discuss a technique to determine cardiac output.(16)
2. Explain, a complete blood gas analyzer designed to measure pH, pCO2,pO2 from a
sample of whole blood. (16)
3. Explain how the various Physiological parameters listed below could be measured.
i) To measure the B.P ( any technique)
ii) To measure the blood flow by electromagnetic blood flow meter.
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iii) To measure the respiratory measurement. (16)
4. i) Explain the principle of operation of an ultrasonic blood flow meter. (8)
ii) How will you measure blood pressure using sphygmomanometer? (8)
5. Draw schematic diagram showing the essential components of U-V recorder. Explain the
operation of this recorder and state the applications of this device. (16)
6. Explain with neat sketch a typical blood flow meter. Discuss working of digital pH
meter. (16)
7. i) Explain the origin of different heart sounds. (8)
ii) Explain the working principle of Plethysmography. (8)
8. i) What is GSR and ESR? (4)
ii) Describe the method to determine the concentration of Oxygen in expired gas. (12)

UNIT IV
MEDICAL IMAGING AND PMS
1. i) Discuss in detail about the basic components of a multichannel biotelemetry system.(8)
ii) Explain various modulation techniques used in a telemetry system. (8)
2. i) Explain the working principle of single channel telemetry system with a neat block
diagram. (8)
ii) Write short notes on endoscopes. (8)
3. i) Draw an X-ray tube and explain generation of X-rays. (8)
ii) List out the properties of X-rays. (8)
4. Discuss the working principle of an infrared thermographic equipment. Mention
applications of thermography. (16)
5. Explain the working of a thermographic unit with a neat block diagram. (16)
6. i) Write down the application of Bio Telemetry. (6)
ii) What are the Physiological parameters adaptable to Bio Telemetry.(6)
iii) Draw a block diagram of a typical Bio Telemetry Transmitter(4)
7. With reference to Electrical Safety. Write about
i) Grounding
ii) Double Insulation
iii) Protection by low voltage
iv) Ground Fault circuit Interrupter
v) Shock hazards from electrical equipment. (16)
8. How is magnetic resonance imaging system, useful in the medical field?
Explain the operation of this system with relevant sketches. (16)
9. What is the role of computed tomography in diagonising a disease? Give examples.
Describe the technique of obtaining tomography with relevant diagrams. (16)
10. Describe with neat sketch construction and working of various components in X-ray
machine. (16)
11. i) Explain the working of Radiography and Fluoroscopy in detail. (8)
ii) Distinguish between TDM and FDM. (8)
12. i) Draw a telemetry circuit to transmit ECG signals in a reliable manner. (8)
ii) Explain with block diagram the patient monitoring system using telemetry. (8)

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UNIT V- ASSISTING AND THERAPEUTIC EQUIPMENTS

1. Explain the basic principle of operation of an ultrasonic diathermy unit. List out its
applications. (16)
2. Explain the working of a DC defibrillator with a neat block diagram. (16)
3. What is dialysis? Explain the principle of operation of a dialyser machine with a neat
block diagram. (16)
4. Explain the working of Heart Lung machine. (16)
5. Write short notes on:
i) Short wave diathermy
ii) Microwave diathermy. (16)
6. Explain the working principle of surgical diathermy unit with a neat block diagram. (16)
7. Discuss different types of defibrillators with a neat sketch. (16)
8. Describe with diagram of peritoneal dialysis. Also discuss with block diagram of
electrosurgical diathermy unit. (16)
9. Explain the process of dialysis with diagrams. How does this technique play a useful role
in medical field? Give a few examples and state the limitations of this technique. (16)
10. i) Explain in detail about the instrumentation aspects of defibrillators. (8)
ii) Draw the typical waveforms of DC defibrillator discharge waveform dual
peak monophasic defibrillator discharge waveform truncated defibrillator discharge
waveform. (8)
11. i) What are Internal Pace Maker, External Pace Maker, Competitive and Non
Competitive Pacing modes, Demand mode, Standby mode. (8)
ii) Draw the block diagram of a typical Internal pacemaker. (8)
12. What is a Synchronised defibrillator? Draw a block diagram of it and explain its
working. (16)
13. Draw a circuit diagram of a Peripheral nerve stimulator and explain it and also discuss
the different types of stimulator waveforms. (16)
14. i) Explain the principle of working of Ventilators. (8)
ii) Explain about audiometers in bio-medical instrumentation. (8)

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