Introduction

Recent years have witnessed breakthroughs in sensing technology, treatments and ways to interact with patients in medical and healthcare applications. Examples include minimally-invasive embedded and bio-compatible devices, deep-brain stimulation, "smart skin", and artificial retinas. In addition, the medical device industry is undergoing a rapid transformation, embracing the potential of embedded software and network connectivity. Yet, despite the tremendous promise, the medical devices are still burdened by complex design, safety assurance, and tendency to operate independently.

Medical Cyber-Physical Systems are safety-critical, interconnected, intelligent systems of medical devices. The combination of embedded software controlling the devices, networking capabilities, unique sensing and actuation technologies, and complicated physical dynamics exhibited by patient bodies highlights some of the specific research challenges for this distinct class of cyber-physical systems. As such systems become increasingly complex, interconnected, and interoperating, the major challenge is how to assure and improve the safety, security, efficiency and reliability of medical cyber-physical systems.

Scope, Description, and More Information

This special issue seeks papers describing significant research contributions in the domain of medical cyber-physical systems; each paper should show enough evidence of contributions to medical cyber-physical systems applications and systems in practice. Areas of interest include, but are not limited to:

• Case studies and experience reports for medical cyber-physical systems
• Infrastructure support for high-confidence medical cyber-physical systems, including architectures, platforms, middleware, resource management, QoS
• Medical device Plug-and-Play operation and interoperability
• Control and sensing in medical cyber-physical systems for physiological closed-loop treatment - assuring safety and effectiveness for systems with varying degree of caregiver supervision
• Programming models and tools for high-confidence medical systems
• Modeling and analysis of safety and reliability properties of medical cyber-physical systems
• Caregiver and patient modeling, including high fidelity organ/patient models for the design and validation of medical cyber-physical systems
• Evidence-based validation and certification for high-confidence medical cyber-physical systems.

Schedule

• Full paper submission deadline: July 31, 2016
• First author notification: December 1, 2016
• Revised paper due: February 1, 2017
• Final author notification: March 15, 2017
• Expected publication: Fall, 2017

For further information, please contact MedicalCPS@duke.edu.

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