Researcher

Dr Thanh Nho Do

Keywords

Biography

Dr Thanh Nho Do  is currently a Scientia Senior Lecturer at Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering (GSBmE), University of New South Wales (UNSW), Sydney.  He directs UNSW Medical Robotics Lab. In 2015, he was awarded his PhD degree in Mechanical Engineering (Surgical Robotics) from the School of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering (MAE), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore.  He also received his B. Eng. degree in...view more

Dr Thanh Nho Do  is currently a Scientia Senior Lecturer at Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering (GSBmE), University of New South Wales (UNSW), Sydney.  He directs UNSW Medical Robotics Lab. In 2015, he was awarded his PhD degree in Mechanical Engineering (Surgical Robotics) from the School of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering (MAE), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore.  He also received his B. Eng. degree in Manufacturing Engineering with Honor Program from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology, Vietnam. He was a Postdoctoral Scholar at California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI), UC Santa Barbara (UCSB), USA. He also worked as a Research Fellow and a Group Leader at Robotic Research Center, School of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering (MAE), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore.

His main research interests include:

  • Flexible surgical devices, especially Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscopic Surgery (NOTES) systems, for gastrointestinal cancer treatments
  • Soft robotics including stretchable sensors and actuators for haptic/tactile displays and their applications to other robotic systems
  • Soft assistive device for heart failure and soft artificial organs
  • Soft Wearable Haptic Devices 
  • Functional materials for soft electronics and biomedical applications
  • Variable stiffness structures for flexible endoscopic systems, soft robotics and other biomedical applications
  • Miniature soft magnetic robots for drug delivery systems
  • Soft magnetic capsule endoscopy for obesity treatments and gastrointestinal diagnosis
  • Soft pneumatic/hydraulic actuators
  • Soft programmable planar fabric actuators
  • Advanced wearable systems for haptic/tactile displays and NOTES systems
  • Advanced mechatronic systems for the treatment of tracheal diseases and other respiratory disorders
  • Nonlinear backlash/hysteresis modeling and identification methods
  • Advanced control algorithms (feedforward and nonlinear adaptive control) for flexible medical systems and smart materials and structures
 
Editorial Activities:
  • Editor-Nature Communications Engineering
  • Guest Editor-Sensors, Special Issues "Soft Sensors, Actuators and Sensing Technology for Medical Applications"
  • Guest Editor-Micromachines, Special Issues "Soft Robotics: Design, Fabrication, Modeling, Control and Applications"
  • Topic Editor-Frontiers in Medical Technology-Diagnostic and Therapeutic Devices, Research Topic "Wearable Soft Robotics in Diagnostics and Therapeutics"

 

Lab Members and Research Activities:

Please visit UNSW Medical Robotics Lab 

 

UNSW Medical Robotics Lab

 
 

Opportunities

Dr. Do is currently looking for undergraduate and postgraduate students to join his research group starting in Term 3 (Sept/2022), Term 1 (Jan/2023) or Terms in 2023. The research projects include
  • Project 1: The design, fabrication, modeling, control of novel soft artificial organs using soft robotic technologies (soft sensors and actuators) 
  • Project 2: The development of flexible surgical surgical robotics for gastrointestinal cancer treatments,
  • Project 3: Soft wearable haptic devices for VR/AR and medical applications
  • Project 4: Soft wearable assistive device for human augmentation
Prospective students with background in mechanical design, mechatronics, robotics, control systems, and soft materials with good hands-on skills please feel free to contact Dr. Do to discuss desired projects. Please also include CV and transcript together with names and contacts of at least two academic referees.
 
There are several scholarships available for both domestic and international students. Please follow the below links for deadlines and other information:

 

 


My Grants

  • 2024: 3Rs Grant
  • 2023: GROW Early Career Academics Grant
  • 2023: Faculty of Engineering Goldstar Award Grant
  • 2023-2026: ARC Discovery Project
  • 2022-2026: UNSW Scientia Grant
  • 2022: Google Research Program Project
  • 2022: GROW Early Career Academics Grant
  • 2021-2026: ARC Research Hub for Connected Sensors for Health 
  • 2021-2023: Vanguard Grant, Heart Foundation fo Australia
  • 2021-2022: 2021 Technology Research Grants, Intuitive Surgical, USA
  • 2021: The Frontiers Technology Clinical Academic Group 2020 Grant
  • 2021: UNSW minor equipment grant
  • 2020: UNSW Research Infrastructure Scheme 2018
  • 2020: UNSW Research Infrastructure Scheme 2020
  • 2018-2022: UNSW Start-Up Grant
  • 2018-2022: UNSW Scientia Grant
  • 2018: UNSW minor equipment grant
  • 2018-present: (Sole CI or Co-CI) Generous Supports from the Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Egnineering, and University of New South Wales etc.

My Awards

  • 2024: Top 4 Robots of the Year 2023 by Reuters
  • 2023: 2x Finalist Poster Awards, EMBC 2023  Workshop
  • 2023: Best Poster Award, EMBC 2023  Workshop
  • 2023: Best Poster Award, ICRA 2023  Workshop
  • 2023: Top 100 in Engineering Scientific Reports
  • 2023 UNSW Faculty of Engineering Goldstar Award
  • 2022 Google Research Scholar Award
  • 2022 NSW Cardiovascular Research Network Professional Development Award
  • 2021 Arc PGC Outstanding Supervisor Award
  • 2020 The Best of Advanced Materials Technologies

My Teaching

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Location

Room 1003, Level 1, E26 Biological Sciences South

Map reference (Google map)

Contact

(+61) 93852892

Videos

SYDNEY, March 28 (Reuters) - A team of biomedical engineers in Australia have developed a small flexible robot that can be used to 3D print biomaterials directly inside the human body, in the hopes of streamlining future medical procedures.

3D bioprinting is a process where natural tissue-like structures are printed using living cells and other natural tissues known as "bio-ink", in order to repair organ or tissue damage or ruptured blood vessels.

The use of living cells in the printing process allows these man-made structures to fuse naturally with the human body and continue to grow.

Currently, biomaterials must be created outside of the body before relying on typically invasive surgery to insert the materials inside the body, which can lead to high blood loss, infections, and other complications.

Team leader Thanh Nho Do said this new device, named F3DB, will eliminate those complications and risks by printing directly inside the body.

"Currently no commercially available technology can perform direct 3D printing inside the human body," Do told Reuters.

F3DB features a three-axis printing head that can bend and twist using hydraulics on the tip of a soft robotic arm. The printing nozzle can print pre-programmed shapes or can be operated manually if more complex or undetermined printing is required.

The smallest prototype has a diameter of approximately 11-13 millimetres (mm), similar to a commercial endoscope, but it could be scaled even smaller in the future.

"Soft robots (are) very good for working with the human body," Do, the director of the University of New South Wales Medical Robotics Lab, said.

"They can offer high flexibility and adaptability. This means they can fit to any area inside the human body."

Do believes that the device is on track for commercialisation in the next five to seven years, pending further clinical trials.
Biomedical engineers in Australia have developed a prototype of a small flexible robot that they say can be used to 3D print biomaterials directly inside the human body. The device called F3DB functions like an endoscopic tool, and may have applications as a way to repair ruptured tissue or blood vessels without the need for more invasive surgeries. The alternative treatment could in turn low risks associated with surgery, including blood loss and infections.
'Flexible robot' for 3D printing inside the body (Reuters Video)
Robot prototype 3D prints biomaterials inside human body, lowering surgical risks
Smart Robotic Textile_Thomson Reuters
Soft Wearable Haptic Glove
Soft Helical Robotic Fabric Gripper
Smart textile acts like biological muscle, similar to Spider-Man suit
3D Touch Experience