u0249796 – Page 4 – Robotics Center

Kuntz Lab Published in Science Robotics

The Kuntz Lab paper, “Autonomous medical needle steering in vivo” has been published in Science Robotics....

Abby Citterman wins American Orthotic & Prosthetic Association’s Edwin and Kathryn Arbogast Award

Congrats to Abby Citterman for being honored with the best prosthetic abstract at the American Orthotic & Prosthetic Association National Assembly! Her poster is titled Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation at the Wrist as a Method to Restore Sensory Feedback for Individuals with Partial Hand Amputation. Sensory feedback is critical for dexterous hand function, but current methods are cumbersome, inhibiting the natural use of the residual hand or prosthesis. TENS at the wrist may constitute a functional solution for evoking distally referred sensations on the phantom digits and restoring intuitive, non-restrictive sensory feedback for individuals with partial hand amputation. Read the...

Annual Gould Lecture to Feature Star-Wars-Inspired Bionics

In 2019, Jacob George and fellow researchers at the U made waves with the “LUKE Arm” (named after the robotic hand given to Luke Skywalker in The Empire Strikes Back), a prosthetic arm that has the ability to feel objects by transmitting the appropriate signals to the brain. Not only can the arm feel, but it can be controlled by the user’s thoughts. In the 2023 Distinguished Gould Lecture, George will highlight this technology and the advances that have taken place since their breakthrough technology was first announced — including translation into bionic exoskeletons to aid individuals with paralysis...

Revolutionizing Science Education

In a lab in the U’s Craig H. Nielsen Rehabilitation Hospital, so new that plastic wrap and tape still enclose monitors and equipment cabinets, three or four middle school science teachers group around research assistant and recent MS graduate Bret Mecham, who is wearing a bionic exoskeleton on his arm. The bionic arm moves up and down. “I’m not controlling this,” Mecham tells the audience, “He is—” indicating a teacher who is holding an electrode on his forearm. As the teacher flexes and relaxes, the electrode picks up electrical signals in his muscle. Those signals translate into mechanical motion...

Kuntz and Abbott Receive NSF Grant

Alan Kuntz (PI) and Jake Abbott (co-PI) were awarded a National Science Foundation grant “Modeling, Control, and Motion Planning of Magnetic-screw Microrobots in Soft Tissue”. $740,283, 9/1/2023-8/31/2026....

Dr. George Gives Expert Testimonial on Latest Research

When someone loses a hand or leg, they don’t just lose the ability to grab objects or walk—they lose the ability to touch and sense their surroundings. Prosthetics can restore some motor control, but they typically can’t restore sensation. Now, a preliminary study posted to the preprint server bioRxiv this month—shows that by mimicking the activity of nerves, a device implanted in the remaining part of the leg helps amputees “feel” as they walk, allowing them to move faster and with greater confidence. continue reading on Science...

Lenzi Receive New $1.7M grant from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)

Prof. Tommaso Lenzi received a new grant from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). This grant will support the Ergonomics and Safety program at the University of Utah, and it is part of a larger Education and Research Center (ERC) grant award by NIOSH to the Rocky Mountain Center for Occupational and Environmental Health (RMCOEH)....

Abby Citterman Wins 3rd Place in EMBC Student Paper Competition!

In the world of cutting-edge research and groundbreaking discoveries, the Utah NeuroRobotics Lab has always been at the forefront. It is with immense pride and excitement that we celebrate one of our own, Abby Citterman, for her outstanding achievement in the student paper competition at the prestigious 2023 IEEE Engineering Medicine & Biology Conference. Abby’s passion for research and her exceptional paper have earned her a well-deserved 3rd place in the competition. Read more...

Abbott and Rogue Space Systems Receive Space Force Grant

Jake Abbott and Rogue Space Systems were awarded a Space Force STTR Phase 2 grant “Use of Rotating Magnetic Fields to Detumble Irregular Asymmetric Space Debris-Like Objects”. $420,000. 7/24/2023-10/23/2023....

HGN Lab Published Paper in IEEE Transaction on Biomedical Engineering

Volitional control systems for powered prostheses require the detection of user intent to operate in real-life scenarios. Ambulation mode classification has been proposed to address this issue. However, these approaches introduce discrete labels to the otherwise continuous task which is ambulation. An alternative approach is to provide users with direct, voluntary control of the powered prosthesis motion. In this study, we show that a small and lightweight A-mode ultrasound system can continuously predict prosthesis joint kinematics in seven individuals with transfemoral amputation across different ambulation tasks. Features from the A-mode ultrasound signals were mapped to the user’s prosthesis kinematics...