Computers, Robots, and Games to promote healing

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Joyce and Mike speak with Dr. Hermano Igo Krebs of MIT’s Newman Lab for Biomechanics and Human Rehabilitation. His group is inventing robots — machines to assist patients with rehabilitation from brain injury – from stroke to cerebral palsy to accidents and surgery. Dr. Krebs describes his research best:

“Underlying my research is one overarching goal: to revolutionize the practice of rehabilitation medicine by applying robotics and information technology that can assist, enhance, and quantify rehabilitation — particularly neuro-rehabilitation. Unlike the efforts of predecessors who used robotics as an assistive technology for the disabled, my approach uses robots and computers to support and enhance the clinicians’ productivity as they facilitate a disabled individual’s functional recovery.

“The embodiment of this goal is a new class of interactive, user-affectionate clinical devices designed not only for evaluating patients, but also for delivering meaningful therapy via engaging “video games.” The science is the understanding of the neuro-muscular, motor learning, and neuro-recovery processes. The engineering is the design and control of human-machine interfaces in general, and robot-aids for different limbs and body segments in particular. On the crossroad between science and engineering is the patients’ movement analysis. At first blush this might seem unduly ambitious; a “technology push” rather than a “market pull.” Yet as with other archaic industries, the rehabilitation field is ripe for a change. Robotics and information technology can provide an overdue transformation of rehabilitation clinics from primitive manual operations to more technology-rich operations.

“Robot-aids not only are more efficient in delivering certain routine physical and occupational therapy activities, but also provide a rich stream of data that assists in patient diagnosis, customization of the therapy, and maintenance of patient records (at the clinic and at home). Our research group pioneered the use of robots in three distinct areas, and since then has energetically promoted the concept (for more detail check http://newmanlab.mit.edu/#The%20Newman%20Lab

The company they formed to make these robots for rehabilitation is http://bionikusa.com/

For a list of their clinical partners, see http://bionikusa.com/clinical-partner/featured-clinical-partners/