This colloquium is composed of three talks on robotics for lower limb rehabilitation and assistance. The talks will be followed by drinks.
16:00 – Associative Neurorehabilitation with Wearable Robotics: improved assessment of motor function for efficient interventions by Dr José Luis Pons Rovira
Dr José Luis Pons Rovira, Neural Rehabilitation Group, Spanish National Research Council, Spain
Abstract. Wearable robotics can play a role in rehabilitation and functional compensation in a number of neurological conditions, e.g. hemiplegia post stroke, paraplegia or quadriplegia post SCI, which lead to sever motor impairments. However, in general, the musculoskeletal system after the insult is preserved and Motor Neuroprostheses (MNPs) can also be considered as valid technologies for rehabilitation and functional compensation. In view of the features of both technologies, our current approach at the Neural Rehabilitation Group is to study the combination of neurorobots (NRs) and motor neuroprostheses for rehabilitation and functional compensation of motor disorders of neurological origin. In this concept, three players are to be combined for an optimal intervention, i.e. the patients with their latent motor capabilities, and the two technologies NRs and MNPs. The evaluation of latent capabilities of the patients becomes a crucial aspect for the orchestration of all three actors in promoting functional recovery or substitution. The association of our technology-based interventions to the motor status becomes a key component of the new therapies.
Bio. Prof. Pons obtained his PhD in Physics, Universidad Complutense Madrid, in 1997. In 1998 he was appointed as Postdoctoral Fellow at the Institute for Industrial Automation of the Spanish Council for Scientific Research, CSIC. In 1999 he was awarded a position as Tenured Scientist, in 2007 a position as Research Scientist and eventually in 2008 a position as Full Professor, all of them at the same institution. Prof. J.L. Pons is with CSIC since 1993 and has actively participated in a number of National, European and International RTD projects in the area of rehabilitation robotics, new actuators and control technologies. In particular, he was co-ordinator of EU GAIT, EU MANUS and EU ESBiRRo projects. In addition he is currently co-ordinating of several national scope and European projects, e.g. EU NeuroTREMOR, Biomot, H2R and HYPER.
16:45 – Wearable robotics for a sustainable ageing by Dr Nicola Vitiello
Dr Nicola Vitiello, The BioRobotics Institute, Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Italy
Abstract. Ageing population affects society welfare sustainability. The ageing of the population is one of the most critical challenges current industrialized societies will have to face in the next years, and threatens the sustainability of our social welfare. In 40 years from now, nearly 35% of the European population will be older than 60, hence the urgency to provide solutions enabling our ageing society to remain active, creative, productive, and – above all – independent. Among many diseases, gait disorders and upper-limb impairment are common and often devastating companions of ageing, leading to reductions in quality of life and increased mortality.In the next years, ageing-related upper- and lower-limb impairment and disability will lead to a tremendous increase of the number of people needing assistance in their fundamental activities of daily living. In this scenario, people will become increasingly reliant on technology to meet their own needs to live active, fulfilling, and independent lives. Wearable robotics can be an enabling technology for establishing a sustainable welfare.This presentation will introduce the results achieved by the team of wearable robotics of The BioRobotics Institute of Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna in the last years. In particular, the following devices will be presented: the upper-limb exoskeletons NEUROExos, the hand exoskeleton HX, and the Active Pelvis Orthosis.
Bio. Nicola Vitiello received the M.Sc. degree in biomedical engineering (cum laude) from the University of Pisa, Italy, in 2006, and from Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna (SSSA), Pisa, Italy, in 2007. He also received the Ph.D. degree in biorobotics from SSSA, Pisa, Italy, in 2010. He is currently Assistant Professor with The BioRobotics Institute (SSSA) where he leads the Wearable Robotics Laboratory. He is the author or co-author of more than 40 ISI/Scopus papers. He has served as the Scientific Secretary of the EU FP7 CA-RoboCom project, and as the Scientific Coordinator of the EU FP7 CYBERLEGs project and the EARLYREHAB Project funded by Regione Toscana. Currently he is the Scientific Coordinator of the IUVO project funded by Fondazione Pisa and Scientific Partner of the EU H2020 AIDE project. Recently, he co-founded the spin-off company IUVO Srl.
17:30 – Emerging directions in Lower Limb Wearable Robots for gait support and augmentation by Dr Jan F. Veneman
Dr Jan F. Veneman, Rehabilitation Robotics, Tecnalia Research and Innovation, Spain
Abstract.This talk will provide a broad overview of the main challenges and emerging R&D directions in Lower Limb Wearable Robotics. Main two topics will be the ongoing efforts in standardization and benchmarking, relevant to eventual resulting products and to defining results and goals relative to the state of the art, as well as on the approach and initial results from the BALANCE project, an FP7 project that focuses on the control and support of safe postural balance through the use of a leg exoskeleton.
Bio. Jan F. Veneman, Health – Rehabilitation Robotics, Tecnalia Research and Innovation, Spain. Jan is mechanical engineer and doctor in biomechatronics with University of Twente, Netherlands. Since 2008 he is working in Tecnalia (former Fatronik) as project manager and senior researcher on human-robot interaction, rehabilitation of gait and posture, and robotic ortheses for gait; lines in which he was active since 2002, starting with the development of the LOPES gait rehabilitation robot. Since 2013 he is coordinating the EC-FP7 consortium research Project BALANCE, on the development of a robotic exoskeleton with self-balancing control and since 2012 international expert in several ISO and IEC standardization working groups related to wearable robotics, and in an IEEE Study Group on performance benchmarks, also related to wearable robotics.