Testing of soft tissues and biomaterials presents many unique challenges for those in the biomedical field. Many soft tissues, such as skin or collagen, are delicate specimens with low
ultimate strength values, requiring a testing system that is highly sensitive to low force measurements and small displacements in tension, compression, flexure and fatigue. Gripping solutions for tissues can be extremely problematic due to their size, fragile nature and that typically testing must be conducted under in-vivo conditions. Testing in-vivo ensures that the mechanical properties of natural tissues are maintained and that bioengineered tissues are tested in their working environment.
Our temperature-controlled BioPuls™ Bath has a pneumatic lifting and lowering mechanism that allows easy specimen loading in the grips and prevents spilling of solution in the test space. The Submersible Pneumatic Grips are operated with a footswitch, providing you “hands-free” operation for easy loading of soft, compliant specimens. You are also able to adjust the grip pressure to accommodate a wide variety of specimens with a single set of grips. For example, hydrogels and soft tissues require a lower gripping pressure than rigid plastics or metal wire to prevent tearing and consequently failure in the grips. Finally, pneumatic grips provide a constant grip pressure throughout the test to prevent or minimize specimen slipping.
The grips can be removed from the submersible pull-rods and allow for attachment of a wide variety of additional submersible fixtures - compression platens, flexure fixtures or your own custom fixture designed for your specific testing needs.