Robotics to Restore and Retrain Human Movements

2018-19 CUSP Distinguished Speaker Series

Tuesday, February 5, 2019
6:00–8:00 p.m. 
Davis Auditorium, Schapiro CEPSR

Neural disorders limit the ability of humans to perform activities of daily living. Robotics can be used to probe the human neuromuscular system and create new pathways to relearn, restore, and improve functional movements. Dr. Agrawal’s group at the Columbia University Robotics and Rehabilitation (ROAR) Laboratory has designed innovative robots for this purpose and tested these on human subjects. Human experiments have targeted patients with stroke, cerebral palsy, Parkinson’s disease, ALS, Vestibular disorders, elderly subjects and others. The talk will provide an overview of some of these scientific studies.

Biography

Sunil K. Agrawal received a Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University in 1990. He is currently a Professor and Director of Robotics and Rehabilitation (ROAR) Laboratory at Columbia University, located both in engineering and medical campuses of Columbia University. He has published close to 500 journal and conference papers. Dr. Agrawal is a Fellow of the ASME and AIMBE. His honors include a NSF Presidential Faculty Fellowship from the White House in 1994, a Bessel Prize from Germany in 2003, and a Humboldt US Senior Scientist Award in 2007. He is a recipient of 2016 Machine Design Award from ASME for “seminal contributions to design of robotic exoskeletons for gait training of stroke patients” and 2016 Mechanisms and Robotics Award from the ASME for “cumulative contributions and being an international leading figure in mechanical design and robotics.” He is a recipient of several Best Paper awards in ASME and IEEE sponsored robotics conferences. He has held positions of a Distinguished Visiting Professor at Hanyang University in Korea, a Professor of Robotics at the University of Ulster in Northern Ireland, and a Visiting Professor at the Biorobotics Institute of SSSA in Pisa. He actively serves on editorial boards of conferences and journals published by the ASME, IEEE, and other professional societies.