Method and device for measuring anisotropic mechanical properties of tissue

A tissue analyzer for testing mechanical properties of viscoelastic material comprising:

• a flexural resonator possessing a distal end which is adapted to be applied perpendicular to and in contact with a viscoelastic material to be analyzed and a base end;
• at least one transducer element attached to the base end of the flexural resonator, for oscillating the flexural resonator at a plurality of angles of oscillation and for providing input related to resonance frequencies and resonance peak widths of the flexural resonator;
• a processor unit for transmitting signals to the transducer element to control the angle of oscillation of the flexural resonator and for receiving input related to resonance frequencies and resonance peak widths of the flexural resonator;
• a phase-locked loop circuit for obtaining input data relating to the resonance frequencies and resonance peak widths of the flexural resonator at each of the plurality of angles of oscillation and for transmitting the input data to the processor unit;
• a memory unit readily accessible to the processor unit for storing the input data and instructions;
• a calculator means for determining specific mechanical properties of the viscoelastic material being analyzed by manipulating the input data, retrieved from the memory unit, relating to the resonance frequencies and resonance peak widths of the flexural resonator;
• and
• a display, for displaying values of the mechanical properties of the viscoelastic material at the plurality of angles of oscillation.