Purdue Students’ Medical Tool Design Named Finalist in Collegiate Inventors Competition  

Patent-pending augmented laparoscopic grasper helps surgeons see force they apply during surgery

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — A Purdue University alumna and a graduate student have been recognized for their invention designed and tested to improve a surgeon’s experience with a commonly performed surgery, resulting in better results for patient recovery time.

Morgan Coghlan and Ronith Dasari created an augmented laparoscopic grasper during the capstone design course in their junior and senior years at the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering. They were named finalists in the Collegiate Inventors Competition. The public can vote for their favorite team online once per day through 5 p.m. ET, Oct. 15.

The patent-pending grasper design incorporates sensors, microcomputers and displays to inform surgeons how much pressure is being applied to tissue during laparoscopic surgeries like appendectomies, gallbladder removals and gynecological procedures. A one-minute video about the augmented laparoscopic grasper is online at the National Inventors Hall of Fame’s YouTube channel.

Asem Aboelzahab, their advisor and lead instructional labs and senior design projects coordinator at the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, was also named on the finalist team. The annual Collegiate Inventors Competition has rewarded innovations, discoveries and research by college and university students and their faculty advisors for 35 years.

Ten finalist teams in two categories will present their inventions Oct. 16 to a panel of final-round judges composed of the most influential inventors and invention experts in the nation — National Inventors Hall of Fame inductees and U.S. Patent and Trademark Office officials.
Winning teams, which will be announced Oct. 16, receive cash prizes and patent acceleration.

Coghlan and Dasari disclosed the device to the Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization, which has applied for a patent to protect the intellectual property. Industry partners interested in developing or commercializing the work should contact Patrick Finnerty, OTC assistant director of business development and licensing — life sciences, at pwfinnerty@prf.org, about track code 71046.

Laparoscopic surgery, tools and their drawbacks

Laparoscopic surgery is a minimally invasive surgical technique commonly used around the world. Applications include gynecological procedures, gallbladder removal and appendectomies. Small incisions are made in the patient’s abdomen and air is injected into the space to inflate it.

“From there surgeons insert specialized tools, including a camera, graspers, scalpels and others,” Coghlan said. “The tool designs allow surgeons to manipulate the target area from outside the patient; for example, laparoscopic graspers have long necks to reach a target area, while the surgeon manipulates the handle externally.”

Coghlan said the primary benefit of laparoscopic surgery is reducing the patient’s recovery period.

“Because access incisions are small, the resulting stitches and area required to heal are smaller, reducing the strain on the patient and making it easier to return to their daily routine,” she said. “Also, being minimally invasive reduces the chance of complications with the surgery.”

However, a surgeon receives significantly reduced feedback when using the specialized tools outside the patient’s body during a laparoscopic procedure. Using graspers to grab on to tissue reduces a surgeon’s understanding of the tissue’s general texture and how much force is being applied.

“As a result, a surgeon may apply too much force to tissue and cause damage without realizing it. This could potentially increase recovery times or require a switch to open surgery,” Coghlan said.

About the Purdue augmented laparoscopic grasper

Coghlan and Dasari’s augmented laparoscopic grasper improves upon traditional graspers with the use of microelectronics. Dasari said a sensor housed at the tip measures the applied force.

“A microcomputer connected to the grasper translates the data into a visual display showing both numerical values and a bar graph,” Dasari said. “This is overlaid onto the surgeon’s laparoscopic camera feed in real time, allowing surgeons to visually monitor how much force they are applying.”

Raishma Anwar, Maneesh Balla and Tyler Dierckman were part of the augmented grasper team during the first semester of the project. Additional mentors include Dr. Mohan Gundeti from the University of Chicago Medicine and Purdue engineering faculty Brock Beauclair, Jonathan Cody, Chi Hwan Lee and Michael Linnes.

Validation tests and next steps

Dasari said the Purdue grasper is in the advanced prototyping stage. A functional prototype was created via 3D printing and scaled larger than its intended final dimensions. Initial validation testing was performed during the senior design capstone course in the 2024-25 academic year.

“Early results indicate increased user confidence and accuracy when using our prototype compared to a commercially available grasper,” he said.

Next development steps involve creating a higher fidelity prototype using advanced manufacturing methods to achieve clinical scale dimensions.

“This refined version will undergo further validation testing to determine whether it can consistently deliver benefits to users,” Dasari said.

About Purdue biomedical capstone design projects

Aboelzahab said the capstone design experience at the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering starts during a student’s junior year in the program. Student teams engage with stakeholders, explore clinical and health care needs, and create a product development proposal to address a well-defined need in health care. Their ideas often lead to their senior capstone design project.

“The courses students take in junior and senior year require them to speak with subject-matter experts; define a clear value to their target customer; design a solution to address an unmet need; and prototype and test that solution by employing engineering, regulatory and testing standards,” he said.

Aboelzahab said the capstone design experience allows students to test their knowledge and ability to apply theory and hands-on skills to solve open-ended problems. He said these skills are crucial for students’ postgraduation careers in industry, research, academia or other sectors.

“Students often reference it as their most memorable and impactful experience during their undergraduate tenure at Purdue,” he said. “We are continuously amazed with the level of design and innovation our students demonstrate year after year.”

About the Collegiate Inventors Competition

The Collegiate Inventors Competition encourages and drives innovation and entrepreneurship at the collegiate level. A program of the National Inventors Hall of Fame, this competition recognizes and rewards the research, innovations and discoveries by college students and their advisors for projects leading to inventions that have the potential of receiving patent protection. Introduced in 1990, the competition has featured more than 500 innovators who have created cutting-edge, world-changing inventions, and awarded more than $1 million of support to winning student teams for their innovative work and scientific achievement through the help of its sponsors. For more information, visit invent.org/collegiate-inventors.

About Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization

The Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization operates one of the most comprehensive technology transfer programs among leading research universities in the U.S. Services provided by this office support the economic development initiatives of Purdue University and benefit the university’s academic activities through commercializing, licensing and protecting Purdue intellectual property. In fiscal year 2024, the office reported 145 deals finalized with 224 technologies signed, 466 invention disclosures received, and 290 U.S. and international patents received. The office is managed by the Purdue Research Foundation, a private, nonprofit foundation created to advance the mission of Purdue University. Contact otcip@prf.org for more information.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a public research university leading with excellence at scale. Ranked among top 10 public universities in the United States, Purduediscovers, disseminates and deploys knowledge with a quality and at a scale second to none. More than 106,000 students study at Purdue across multiple campuses, locations and modalities, including more than 57,000 at our main campus in West Lafayette and Indianapolis. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue’s main campus has frozen tuition 14 years in a row. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap — including its comprehensive urban expansion, the Mitch Daniels School of Business, Purdue Computes and the One Health initiative — at purdue.edu/president/strategic-initiatives.

Media contact: Steve Martin, sgmartin@prf.org