The Center for Biomedical Engineering Research, CBER, is an interdisciplinary center whose mission is to provide engineering science and clinical technology to reduce the impact of disease on the everyday life of individuals. It was created to provide an appropriate forum and infrastructure to promote the interaction of biomedical researchers from the university and the medical community. As such, it serves as a research umbrella under which investigators from a variety of fields can work together and interact.

CBER builds on a history of interaction between the Departments of Mechanical Engineering, Physical Therapy, Biological Sciences, Health Nutrition and Exercise Sciences, and the A. I. duPont Institute. The A.I. duPont Institute is a modern children's hospital that has extensive clinical and diagnostic facilities. In addition, research collaboration has been established with several other hospitals and medical facilities, including Omega Medical Imaging Center. Through the Department of Mechanical Engineering, CBER researchers have access to an array of computer hardware and software, a variety of mechanical testing equipment and a complete machine shop. The biomechanics laboratories there have an Instron device for testing material properties of tissues, load cells and telemetered EMG systems for testing muscle activation patterns, a flock-of-birds system for measuring limb motion, a Biodex dynamometer, an Aloka 5000 ultrasound unit with a 60 mm linear transducer, a split-belt treadmill, and two multi-camera movement analysis systems. The Department of Physical Therapy has a gait laboratory with multiple camera systems with two force plates, an EMG data acquisition system and a muscle performance laboratory. The Human Performance Laboratory at the Department of Health, Nutrition and Exercise Sciences houses a gait laboratory with a motion analysis facility complete with high speed cameras, 2 multi-axis force plates, an EMG telemetry unit, and a variety of computers and ancillary equipment.