The VIRTUAL Consortium warmly welcomes Prof Duane Cronin as new member in the Advisory Group.
Duane Cronin is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, and University Research Chair in Impact Mechanics and Material Characterization (IMMC) at the University of Waterloo. His expertise lies in the areas of impact mechanics, and material characterization applied to trauma biomechanics, auto crash and occupant simulation, pipeline integrity, and multi-material lightweight vehicles.
The field of Impact Biomechanics seeks to understand the response of the human body to high-rate loading, the potential for injury or trauma, and methods to mitigate injury. Research areas include characterization and constitutive modelling for biological tissues, finite element implementations, and human body modelling. Detailed human body models represent an evolution in assessing occupant safety in vehicle crash scenarios through Virtual Vehicle Evaluation, and also act as tools for the design of improved vehicle safety. These innovative human models are also used to improve blast protection for the head, thorax and lower extremity, and to develop enhanced ballistic protection to mitigate Behind Armour Blunt Trauma (BABT).
Professor Cronin currently leads the Neck Model Centre of Expertise for the Global Human Body Models Consortium and is a council member and board member on the International Research Council on Biomechanics of Injury (IRCOBI).