Proceedings Article | 17 April 2007
KEYWORDS: Bone, Ultrasonics, Wave propagation, Sensors, Wavelet transforms, Data processing, Tissues, Time-frequency analysis, Solids, Atmospheric propagation
Bone is a smart, self-adaptive and also partly self-repairing tissue. In recent years, many researchers seek to find
how to give the effective mechanical stimulation to bone, because it is the predominant loading that determines
the bone shape and macroscopic structure. However, the trial of regeneration of bone is still under way. On the
other hand, it has been known that electrical potential generates from bone by mechanical stimulation (Yasuda,
1977; Williams, 1982; Starkebaum, 1979; Cochran, 1968; Lanyon, 1977; Salzstein, 1987a,b; Friedenberg, 1966).
This is called "stress-generated potential (SGP)". The process of information transfer between "strain" and
"cells" is not still clear. But, there is some possibility that SGP has something to do with the process of
information transfer. If the electrical potential is more clear under some mechanical loadings, we will be able to
regenerate bone artificially and freely. Therefore, it is important to investigate SGP in detail.
The aim of present study is to investigate the electric reaction arising in dry bone subjected to mechanical
loadings at high amplitude and low frequency strain. Firstly, specimen is fabricated from femur of cow. Next,
the speeds of wave propagation in bone are tried to measure by laser ultra sonic technique and wavelet transform,
because these have relationship with bone density. Secondary, 4-point bending test is conducted up to fracture.
Then, electric reaction arising in bone is measured during loading. Finally, cyclic 4-point bending tests are
conducted to investigate the electric reaction arising in bone at low frequency strain.
