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CLEAR.

CLOSED LOOP ENGINEERING for ADVANCED REHABILITATION
Research Emphases

Research Emphases

CLEAR

Closed-Loop Engineering for Advanced Rehabilitation

MECHANICS

Closing-the-loop between  Wearable Technology and Biology to optimize tissue/organ function.

CONTROL & LEARNING

Merging human intelligence and artificial intelligence to achieve environment adaptation, optimal task performance, and safety

USER PERCEPTION

Integrate human perception and cognition into human-machine system and control

Faculty

CLEAR Research Community

Josh Alexander, MD

Josh Alexander, MD

Chair, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation

John Baratta, MD, MBA

John Baratta, MD, MBA

Clinical Assistant Professor Medical Director, Stroke Rehabilitation

Troy Blackburn, Ph.D.

Troy Blackburn, Ph.D.

Neuromuscular Research Laboratory

Alper Bozkurt, Ph.D.

Alper Bozkurt, Ph.D.

iBionics - Integrated Bionic Microsystems Lab

Jessica Cassidy, PT, DPT, PhD

Jessica Cassidy, PT, DPT, PhD

Assistant Professor, Department of Physical Therapy

Karen Chen, Ph.D.

Karen Chen, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, Edward P. Fitts Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering

Jacque Cole Ph.D.

Jacque Cole Ph.D.

Orthopaedic Mechanobiology Laboratory

Jing Feng, Ph.D.

Jing Feng, Ph.D.

Associate Professor, Department of Psychology

Scott Ferguson, Ph.D.

Scott Ferguson, Ph.D.

System Design Optimization (SDO) Laboratory

William Filer, MD

William Filer, MD

Clinical Assistant Professor Director, Residency Program

Matt Fisher, Ph.D.

Matt Fisher, Ph.D.

Translational Orthopaedic Research Laboratory

Jason Franz, Ph.D.

Jason Franz, Ph.D.

Applied Biomechanics Laboratory

Henry Fuchs, Ph.D.

Henry Fuchs, Ph.D.

FEDERICO GIL DISTINGUISHED PROFESSOR

Debby Givens, PT, DPT, PhD

Debby Givens, PT, DPT, PhD

Director and Professor Division of Physical Therapy Department of Allied Health Sciences UNC-CH

Xiaogang Hu, Ph.D.

Xiaogang Hu, Ph.D.

Neuromechanics Laboratory

Helen Huang, Ph.D.

Helen Huang, Ph.D.

Neuromuscular Rehabilitation Engineering Laboratory

Derek Kamper, Ph.D.

Derek Kamper, Ph.D.

Hand Rehabilitation Laboratory

Michael Y. Lee, M.D., M.H.A., C.P.E.

Michael Y. Lee, M.D., M.H.A., C.P.E.

Senior Faculty Physical Medicine & Rehab Baylor College of Medicine

Mike Lewek, Ph.D.

Mike Lewek, Ph.D.

Neurogait Research laboratory

Ming Liu, Ph.D.

Ming Liu, Ph.D.

Research Assistant Professor

Edgar Lobaton, Ph.D.

Edgar Lobaton, Ph.D.

Active Robotic Sensing (ARoS) Laboratory

Karen McCulloch, PT, PhD, NCS

Karen McCulloch, PT, PhD, NCS

Professor Board Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy Division of Physical Therapy Department of Allied Health Sciences

Vicki Mercer, PT, Ph.D.

Vicki Mercer, PT, Ph.D.

Associate Professor Director, Human Movement Science PhD Program Division of Physical Therapy Department of Allied Health Sciences UNC-CH

Blaise Morrison, PhD, CRC, PC

Blaise Morrison, PhD, CRC, PC

Assistant Professor

Zeljko Pantic, Ph.D.

Zeljko Pantic, Ph.D.

Associate Professor Electrical and Computer Engineering

Brian Pietrosimone, PhD, ATC

Brian Pietrosimone, PhD, ATC

Neuromuscular Research Laboratory

Kate Saul, Ph.D.

Kate Saul, Ph.D.

Movement Biomechanics Laboratory

Nitin Sharma, Ph.D.

Nitin Sharma, Ph.D.

Associate Professor, Neuromuscular Control & Robotics

Jonathan Stallrich, Ph.D.

Jonathan Stallrich, Ph.D.

Associate Professor, NCSU Department of Statistics

Louise Thoma, PT, DPT, PhD

Louise Thoma, PT, DPT, PhD

Assistant Professor. Division of Physical Therapy Department of Allied Health Sciences

Erik Wikstrom, PhD, ATC, LAT

Erik Wikstrom, PhD, ATC, LAT

Assistant Professor, Athletic Training Katherine Smith Gunter Fellow Co-Director, Sport Medicine Research Laboratory Department of Exercise and Sport Science UNC-CH

News

Latest News & Research Videos

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NOW HIRING

Postdoctoral Research Associate 
Case Western Reserve University

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Validation of a Computer-Based Psychomotor Study

Validation of a Computer-Based Psychomotor Study

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UL PR Demo_compressed

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NSF Prosthetic Science Now story

NSF Prosthetic Science Now story

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Upcoming Seminars

Coulter Seminars
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Ryan Roemmich, PhD

Assistant Professor

Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation

Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

October 13, 2023

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José Pons. PhD

November 17, 2023

Seminar Flyer

Professor

Departments of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, Biomedical Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering

 Northwestern University

Additional Rehab Related Seminars, Talks & Meetings

Rehab Labs Research Meetings

When: 1st Fri­day of the Month from 9:30am — 10:30am
Dates: See cal­en­dar 
Loca­tions: Engi­neer­ing Build­ing III, Room 4142 & Mary Ellen Jones, Room 9010A

 

About: The sem­i­nar series serves as an oppor­tu­nity for stu­dents to present research progress and obtain feed­back from fac­ulty and their peers. For faculty/ postdocs, the meet­ings serve as a plat­form to share grant sub­mis­sion ideas and solicit feedback.

Recent Presenters

Contact
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Joint Rehab/Regen Monthly Meeting

June 2, 2023

 

Peter Shull, Ph.D., Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

Topic: Wearable Systems for Biomedical Applications and Human Computer Interaction

Dr. Shull's talk presented an overview of various research topics related to wearable systems including wrist-worn hand gesture recognition, wearable gait and posture assessment and training, soft wearable haptics, and cellphone AR rehabilitation.

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Joint Rehab/Regen Monthly Meeting

March 10, 2023

 

He (Helen) Huang, Ph.D., Jackson Family Distinguished Professor in the joint Department of Biomedical Engineering at NC State University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Topic: Neural Engineering in Motor Rehabilitation

Dr. Huang's talk focused on her sabbatical leave in the spring of 2022, and she discussed several interesting research projects that she observed and potential collaborations that can be built between CLEAR and these colleagues in neural engineering in the future. 

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Joint Rehab/Regen Monthly Meeting

February 03, 2023

 

Dr. Joachim Hermsdörfer, Professor, Technical University of Munich

Topic: Grip force control in healthy persons and patients with brain damage

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Joint Rehab/Regen Monthly Meeting

December 02, 2022

 

Dr. Katie Poggensee, Postdoctoral Researcher at T.U. Delft

Topic: Altering balance with a lightweight gyroscopic robotic actuator

Dr. Poggensee's talk described a wearable robotic backpack designed to assist (or perturb) balance. Prior versions of the device have improved standing and walking balance in healthy and post-stroke populations, intentionally perturbed the trunk during standing, and altered swing leg kinematics during walking. The newest iteration has greater functionality, in a smaller form-factor, enabling more complex conditions (e.g., assisting balance across multiple axes) and facilitating use among patient populations. She discussed the results from the previous version as well as future experiments and other uses for this novel actuator.

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Joint Rehab/Regen Monthly Meeting

November 04, 2022

 

Dr. Yasin Dhaher, Professor, Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation | Orthopaedic Surgery, UT Southwestern Medical Center

Topic: Exploring the modulatory effect of spinal track activation on afferent mediated changes in motoneuron excitability in humans

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Joint Rehab/Regen Monthly Meeting

October 07, 2022

 

Dr. James Finley, Associate Professor, Division of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy, University of Southern California

Topic: Learning to Take Advantage of Assistance + ReproRehab

Dr. Finley's talk described his recent work on how people learn to acquire and accept assistance when adapting to walking on a split-belt treadmill. Understanding the strategies people use to modify their gait and the timescales over which this learning occurs is critical for designing effective algorithms that can provide assistance while adapting to changes in the user’s behavior.

Dr. Finley also described ongoing work with the ReproRehab Program. Through this program, his team provides training resources to help rehabilitation researchers develop the data science skills necessary to improve the reproducibility and replicability of their research. He also gave an overview of the ReproRehab curriculum, demonstrated a simple example of a reproducible analysis pipeline, and provided information for anyone interested in joining his next cohort of learners or teaching assistants. 

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Joint Rehab/Regen Monthly Meeting

September 02, 2022

 

Dr. Philipp Gulde, Chair of Human Movement Science, Department of Sport and Health Sciences, Technical University of Munich, Germany

Topic: Everyday Life in Numbers - From Lab to World

Dr. Gulde's talk introduced the clinical value of kinematic assessments, how validity can benefit from measuring outside the lab, why it is worth a try to go beyond energy expenditure, and the potential of wearables to go beyond energy expenditure by kinematic analyses outside the lab.

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Joint Rehab/Regen Monthly Meeting

June 03, 2022

 

Dr. Sang Wook Lee​, Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Catholic University of America

Topic: Impaired Motor Control of Bimanual Action Following Stroke: Understanding Learned Nonuse

Dr. Lee's talk  presented results from a series of studies that examined functional deficits of stroke survivors affecting their arm choice and bimanual action, which could help us better understand the learned nonuse phenomenon.

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Joint Rehab/Regen Monthly Meeting

May 06, 2022

 

Dr. Amy N. Adkins​, Assistant Teaching Professor, Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, UNC Chapel Hill & NC State University

Topic: Validation and Implementation of Multiscale Imaging Techniques for Quantifying Muscle Function and Plasticity

Dr. Adkin's talk  established confidence in the ability to reliably quantify multiscale in vivo muscle structure (from the sarcomere scale to whole muscle) using minimally invasive imaging techniques and demonstrate the extent to which current approaches can detect structural adaptation in human muscle.

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Joint Rehab/Regen Monthly Meeting

April 01, 2022

 

Dr. Roger Cornwall,

  • Clinical Director, Division of Pediatric Orthopaedics 

  • Director, Hand and Upper Extremity Surgery Fellowship

  • Professor, UC Department of Orthopedic Surgery

Topic: Shifting the Paradigm of Neuromuscular Contractures: A Little Medicine to Prevent a Lot of Surgery

Dr. Cornwall's talk told the story of how a clinical problem encountered during the surgical treatment of contractures following brachial plexus birth injury led to basic biological discoveries reshaping our understanding and potentially our treatment of neuromuscular contractures.

Legal Research and Writing
Joint Rehab/Regen Monthly Meeting

March 04, 2022

 

Student Presentations:

  • Chelsea "CJ" Parker (Dr. Lewek's Lab), Subtle Variations in Metronome Cues can Alter Gait Without Conscious Awareness to Promote Implicit Learning

  • Emily Eichenlaub (Dr. Franz's Lab), The Neuromechanics of Anticipated and Unanticipated Balance Perturbations During Standing and Walking

  • Morgan Dalman (Dr. Saul's Lab), Computational Modeling of Glenohumeral Contact and Translation

  • Miranda Ludovice (Dr. Kamper's Lab), The Impact of Finger Length and Posture on Muscle Activation Patterns Using OpenSim

  • Wentao Liu (Dr. Huang's Lab), Inferring Human-Robot Performance Objectives during Locomotion using Inverse Reinforcement Learning