ISE Seminar: Xudong Zhang

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ADVANCING MUSCULOSKELETAL MODELS FOR DIGITAL-AGE HEALTH AND HUMAN SYSTEMS ENGINEERING

Xudong Zhang, Ph.D.
Texas A&M University

Abstract
Musculoskeletal modeling is central to advancing basic biomechanical science and addressing questions that are difficult or impossible to address by experimental studies. It also enables digital-age engineering applications that are transforming the design of human-machine systems as well as the prevention and treatment of musculoskeletal injuries. The new scientific inquiries and digital applications have however heightened the demands on levels of detail, accuracy, and computational performance for the underlying models. This seminar will share our group’s experience in advancing musculoskeletal models to meet such demands. I will first use a few examples to motivate this line of research while highlighting the critical gaps. This will be followed by a presentation of how experimental data acquisition methods have evolved over the years with an emphasis on how modern imaging modalities and biodynamic measurements can be harnessed to take the quality of model building blocks to the next level. I will then describe our latest attempts to put all the pieces together to create subject-specific musculoskeletal models for better personalizing knee injury treatment and understanding the sex differences in neck biomechanics and neck pain prevalence. I will conclude with a summary and some remarks on the future challenges and promises.

About the Speaker
Xudong Zhang is a Professor of Industrial & Systems Engineering and Mechanical Engineering at Texas A&M University. He received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Tsinghua University in China, and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Industrial & Operations Engineering from University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. His research centers on modeling, analysis, and simulation of the human musculoskeletal system and its multi-scale structural components during functional activities, identifying a broad range of healthcare and human-machine system engineering applications. His research has been consistently published in top journals in his core and adjacent disciplines, and has been supported by the NSF, NIH, NIOSH/CDC, ONR, and a few foundations and industrial sponsors. He is a Fellow of Human Factors & Ergonomics Society and serves as an Associate Editor for its flagship journal Human Factors. He has been a keynote speaker on the World Congress of Biomechanics (2014), IEEE International Conference on Human-Machine Systems (2021), and Sino-US Biomechanics Symposium (2022), and International Association of Ergonomics (IEA) Congress (2024).