Philip Brown, PhD
Brown designs and builds medical devices, studies biomechanics and surgical robotics, and uses 3-D printing to produce prototypes, research tools, and anatomical models.
About Philip Brown
Philip Brown, PhD, is a biomedical engineer with expertise in medical device design, manufacturing and testing. He partners with industry to develop new products and conducts research, particularly in the areas of biomechanics and surgical robotics and 3-D printing of medical devices.
Brown earned his master’s degree in 2011 and a PhD in surgical biomechanics in 2015 from the Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences. While a student, he performed research in surgical biomechanics and began his work designing medical devices. Upon his graduation in 2015, he joined the School of Biomedical Engineering and Science faculty as an assistant professor, where he now works closely with his colleagues and industry partners to study, design, develop and commercialize new surgical techniques and medical devices.
When a physician, nurse, student or scientist develops an idea or invention, Brown vets the ideas for originality and potential for success. He and his team will then take the idea and refine it to create a functional prototype as close as possible to final production quality. The prototype is then tested for functionality and demonstrated for commercial interest and licensing.
In his core laboratory role, Brown collaborates with clinicians, colleagues and students to design and develop custom 3-D printed medical devices, research tools, and anatomical models to expedite research and improve clinical outcomes.
Brown finds robotic surgery and clinical 3-D printing to be exciting, challenging areas that are growing quickly. He especially enjoys working with multidisciplinary teams of business and medical professionals to solve clinical problems, allowing him to approach problems from a variety of perspectives.
Brown seeks industry partners who are open to input in design or critical thinking from an engineering and research perspective. He offers a unique ability to study real clinical problems in an open, collaborative relationship to create solutions and bring products to market.
Specialties
Philip Brown, PhD, assistant professor for the Center for Injury Biomechanics in the Virginia Tech-Wake Forest School of Biomedical Engineering, director of the Wake Health Additive Manufacturing Lab, and innovations associate with Wake Forest Innovations, specializes in:
- Biomedical engineering
- Surgical biomechanics
- 3-D printing/additive manufacturing
- Robotics
- Material testing
- Simulation