Experimental identification in the ultrasonic range of a mechanical model for cortical bones

Abstract : This paper deals with the construction of a simplified elastoacoustic model which allows the ultrasonic wave propagation to be simulated in a complex biomechanical system. This simplified model consists in a fluid-solid multilayer System. In this simplified model, the main source of uncertainties is due to the constitutive equation for the solid layer which is chosen as a homogeneous transverse isotropic elastic medium. In order to improve this simplified model, a probabilistic model of the effective elasticity tensor of the solid medium is developped. A method is presented for the experimental identification in a statistical sense of the model parameters using the ultrasonic transmission technique. A complete application is presented for the human cortical bone for which an experimental database is available.