Tucked in the corner of a sorority’s study lounge is biomedical engineering senior Meghna Negi, working on her abstract about photoplethysmography sensors for her senior project.
What her sisters, as well as many of the students on campus, do not know is that she and her group are working on light-based technology for wearable activity trackers like Apple watches and Fitbits, that monitor heart health.
“[There’s an] increase in popularity of wearable technology for health purposes,” said Negi, “It is important to continuously monitor
how accurate [the technology] is, so users can know and physicians can tell potential onset cardiac problems.”
Negi entered San Jose State as a biology major, but was inspired to switch majors after meeting the chair of the biomedical engineering department, Guna Selvaduray, at Admitted Spartans Day, four years ago.
“Sixty to 70 percent of students say that they choose this major because they feel that they can help other people, and that seems to be the driving force which we are happy to reinforce,” said Selvaduray.
To keep it in the family, Negi is the third generation to study engineering at SJSU. Her grandfather graduated with a masters in mechanical engineering and her father graduated with a masters in software and computer engineering.
“I do feel proud that I am keeping up the legacy of engineering in my family, and I’m very proud of how they built their careers off the knowledge that they gained from SJSU’s engineering programs,” said Negi.
Negi has definitely felt the pressure of her major in everything she commits herself to, but the excitement of her field has made other stressors in her life minimal.
As a high school student, Negi volunteered at a hospital for four years. Through that, she found herself interested in how the medical industry uses technology to solve healthcare problems.
“For me, [biomedical engineering] is the innovation and advancement of medical technology, and the overall focus of [biomedical engineering] is looking at human well-being and health,” said Negi, “I really wanted to contribute to the medical field and I decided I wanted to do that through the advancement of medical devices.”
All biomedical engineering seniors must work on an year-long academic project. Negi is working alongside her two partners, Denise Gutierrez and Peter Lazari to further research on a project by Alessandro Bellofiore, a biomedical engineering assistant professor.
The project entails how photoplethysmography sensors with an infrared light system is able to measure pulse data to help determine a person’s heart health.
“One of my favorite parts is forcing myself to think outside the box when it came to the nitty gritty details,” said Gutierrez.
Many senior projects vary in focus. No matter how imaginative and extraordinary they are, all projects still need to be approved by the university’s institutional review board.
The board works to measure safety both in the student-produced projects, as well as in the professional industry.
“While you’re aiming for medical innovation, you don’t want to unnecessarily put human lives at risk for whatever the device may be,” said Negi.
For Negi, the major is just as important as any other engineering major.
“The more innovation and more advancements we have, the better quality of medical life and technology there will be available,” Negi said.
