Organizer:
Jose L. Pons
Neural Rehabilitation Group, Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Madrid, Spain
Co-organizers:
Jose L. Contreras-Vidal
Departments of Electrical & Computer Eng. and Biomedical Eng.University of Houston
Gerard E. Francisco
Dep. of Physical Medicine and Rehab. University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth)
Program:
Monday, 14th
J.L. Pons. User-centered design of powered exoskeletons for the practitioner and the end-user
• Contributions by J.L. Pons, M. Bortole, J.C. Moreno. Hands-on H2 exoskeleton
Tuesday, 15th
G. Francisco. Potential and Pitfalls of Deploying Powered Exoskeleton for Rehabilitation after Stroke and SCI.
• Contributions by G. Francisco, A. Gil-Agudo (WR applied to SCI), M. Molinari (WR applied to stroke)
Thursday, 17th
P. Contreras-Vidal: Neural interfaces for multimodal gait intent detection for powered exoskeletons
• Contributions by J.L. Contreras-Vidal, J.M. Azorín (on detection of attention and obstacles), J. Ibáñez (on combined ERD-MRCPs for detecting intention in upper limbs), M. Sartori (on the use of neuro-musculoskeletal modeling to interface with WR) Hands-on BCI interfaced WR.
Speakers:
Juan C. Moreno
Cajal Institute, CSIC, Spain
Title: Control approaches for walking assistance in autonomous exoskeletons
Abstract: To be successful, autonomous active exoskeletons require a robust human-machine interface for the control, able to understand patient’s intention and contribution to the movement. The talk will discuss the latest progresses and control approaches of most advanced gait exoskeletons for treatment of neurological diseases that affect human mobility. The concept of symbiotic interaction is proposed to improve the management of interactions that take place when humans are assisted to walk by exoskeletons. The approach adopted in the BioMot exoskeleton to develop a cognitive architecture that exploits neuronal control and learning mechanisms will be presented.
José María Azorín
Universidad Miguel Hernández de Elche, Spain
Title: Cognitive attention mechanisms in wearable robots
Abstract: One of the goals of the EU BioMot project (Smart Wearable Robots with Bioinspired Sensory-Motor Skills, Grant Agreement number IFP7-ICT- 2013-10-611695) is to study with a non-invasive technique the cognitive attention mechanisms during walking. This talk will describe the procedures that have been developed in this project to measure the user’s attention to the gait, and to detect the appearance of obstacles using a Brain-Computer Interface.
Massimo Sartori
Department of Neurorehabilitation Engineering, University Medical Center Goettingen, Germany.
Title: Neuromuscular Modeling and Implications in Human-Machine Interfacing Technologies
Abstract: This presentation will explore the possibility of using electromyography-informed neuromuscular modelling for accessing a range of internal mechanical variables underlying human movement including: joint torques, joint contact forces, and joint stiffness. The presentation will outline how these predicted variables can be used to establish intuitive human-machine interfaces. Furthermore, it will delineate how modelling techniques can be applied to scenarios involving patients locomoting using wearable assistive devices.
Ángel Gil-Agudo
Hospital de Parapléjicos de Toledo, Spain
Title: SCI. General overview
Abstract:A short review of clinical aspects regarding spinal cord injury will be the introduction of this presentation. The clinical aspects to be considered when designing new exoskeletons will be discussed including what are the main goals to achieve exoskeletons for lower limbs. A review of the clinical evidence of current exoskeletons will also be presented. Finally we will show our experience with exoskeletons for gait rehabilitation in spinal cord injury patients in a clinical environment.