Final answer:
Biomedical engineers, or bioengineers, design machines like patient monitors, incubators, and respirators. They collaborate with healthcare professionals to create medical devices that improve patient care. Other engineering disciplines may also contribute to aspects of device development.
Step-by-step explanation:
The machines such as patient monitors, incubators, and respirators are primarily designed by biomedical engineers, also known as bioengineers. Biomedical engineers combine principles from physics, chemistry, biology, and medicine with engineering practices to develop devices and systems that address medical and health-related problems. They work with doctors and healthcare specialists to innovate in diagnosing diseases and improve patient care. Typically, these engineers are employed by companies like Medtronic, Baxter Healthcare, and Johnson & Johnson, which specialize in medical technologies.
While biomedical engineering is the most directly related field, other engineers, such as mechanical, electrical, and chemical engineers, can also contribute to the creation of medical devices. Mechanical engineers might focus on the device's physical mechanics, electrical engineers on the electronic functionality, and chemical engineers on materials for biocompatibility. Therefore, the design of complex medical devices like respirators often involves a multidisciplinary engineering effort, leveraging the combined expertise of engineers from multiple specializations.