Justin is a PhD student in the School of Biomedical Engineering (SBME) at The University of British Columbia (UBC). Originally from Zurich, Switzerland, he conducts research in the Molecular Mechatronics Laboratory at UBC and at the International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries (ICORD) in Vancouver. He is co-supervised by Dr. John Madden and Dr. Babak Shadgan. His expertise lies in soft sensors, flexible electronics, electroactive polymers and near-infrared spectroscopy. His research focuses on the development of novel prevention and rehabilitation technologies in healthcare.
He is currently working on a device to prevent pressure ulcers; complex chronic wounds that affect more than 3 million people in North America each year. Most susceptible to the formation of pressure ulcers are individuals living with spinal cord injury, the ageing population, and hospitalized patients. During his Master’s, he developed a soft, flexible, and stretchable pressure sensor array designed to warn of pressure ulcer formation, which he is further advancing and scaling up to accommodate wheelchairs and beds. The goal of his research is to create a fully autonomous prevention device for pressure ulcers based on a prevention algorithm that he is developing using near-infrared spectroscopy. He is an alumnus of UBC’s Engineers in Scrubs program, entrepreneurship@UBC’s Lean Launchpad program, and SFU Beedie School of Business’ Invention-to-Innovation program. In addition, he is the current Engineering President of the Technology in Medicine club at UBC and the former President of the Biomedical Engineering Graduate Association at UBC.
Education
- PhD, Biomedical Engineering, School of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Applied Science & Medicine, The University of British Columbia (2020 – Present)
- Graduate Certificate in Science & Technology Commercialization, Invention to Innovation (i2I) program, Beedie School of Business – Segal Graduate School, Simon Fraser University (2020 – 2021)
- MASc, Biomedical Engineering, School of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Applied Science & Medicine, The University of British Columbia (2017 – 2020)
- BASc, Electrical Engineering, Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, Faculty of Applied Science, The University of British Columbia (2012 – 2017)
Awards
- ICORD Trainee Travel Award, International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries, 2021
- Praxis SCI Incubate Award, Praxis Spinal Cord Institute, 2021
- Invention to Innovation (i2I) Final Venture Pitch Competition – Emerging Venture Finalist, SFU Beedie School of Business, 2021
- President’s Academic Excellence Initiative PhD Award, The University of British Columbia, 2020, 2021
- Three-Minute-Thesis (3MT) Exhibition (Top 5: UBC vs. SFU) – 2nd Place, 2021
- Three-Minute-Thesis (3MT) – Top 5, The University of British Columbia, 2021
- Three-Minute-Thesis (3MT) – 2nd Place & People’s Choice Award, UBC School of Biomedical Engineering, 2021
- UBC International Tuition Award, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021
- Faculty of Applied Science Graduate Award, The University of British Columbia, 2018, 2020
- Western Economic Diversification Canada (WD) Funding Award, Simon Fraser University, 2020
- Dr. Donald, Eleanor & Laurie Rix Biotechnology Graduate Scholarship, Simon Fraser University, 2020
- Applied Science Rising Star, The University of British Columbia, 2020
- School of Biomedical Engineering Best Poster – 3rd Place, The University of British Columbia, 2019
- Faculty of Applied Science Innovation Award, The University of British Columbia, 2019
- School of Biomedical Engineering Best Poster Award – 1st Place, The University of British Columbia, 2018
- Student Leader Award Nominee, The University of British Columbia, 2017
Current Projects
- Development of a soft, flexible and stretchable pressure sensor array designed for the prevention of pressure ulcers in wheelchairs and beds
- Development of a fully autonomous prevention technology for pressure ulcers
- Investigation of the effects of external tissue pressure on soft tissue regions using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS)
Interests
Prevention & Rehabilitation Technologies, Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) Recovery & Repair, Soft Sensors, Flexible Electronics & Electroactive Polymers, Smart Materials, Wearables & Prosthetics, Biophotonics, Entrepreneurship, Sport & Physical Activities: hockey, squash, badminton, (beach) volleyball, football, Travel & Nature, Photography.
Publications
Wyss, J.K.M. (2020). A soft flexible and stretchable pressure sensor array designed to warn of pressure ulcer formation [Master’s thesis]. The University of British Columbia.
Tamura, S., Wyss, J.K.M., Sarwar, S.M., Bahi, A., Madden, J.D.W., Ko, F.K. (2020). Woven Structure for Flexible Capacitive Pressure Sensors. MRS Advances
Allegretto, G., Dobashi, Y., Dixon, K., Wyss, J.K.M, Yao, D., Madden, J. D. W. (2018). Frequency domain analysis of droplet-based electrostatic transducers. Smart Materials and Structures
Madden, J. D. W., Dobashi, Y., Sarwar, M. S., Preston, E. C., Wyss, J.K.M., Woehling, V., Spinks, G. M. (2017). Proximity and touch sensing using deformable ionic conductors (Conference Presentation). In Y. Bar-Cohen (Ed.), Electroactive Polymer Actuators and Devices (EAPAD)
Sarwar, M.S., Dobashi, Y., Preston, C., Wyss, J.K.M., Mirabbasi, S., Madden, J.D.W. (2017). Bend, stretch and touch: locating a finger on an actively deformed transparent sensor. Science Advances