Sensory feedback using spinal cord stimulation for upper-limb active prosthetics

I am primarily interested in the human-prosthesis interaction, particularly in three areas: intelligent
sensor systems, intelligent control, and design of assistive, adaptive rehabilitation technologies. I am
interested in investigating and advancing nuanced sensory feedback as it can significantly improve
the control of these devices. Bidirectional sensory feedback, especially proprioception, is crucial for
the embodiment of artificial limbs and allows for more 'natural' manipulation. The main challenge is
how to feed back this information, which is constrained by the resolution of the human-machine
interface. Thus, I believe improvements in intelligent sensor design, stimulating hardware to increase
resolution and enhance neural activity modulation, as well as understanding the complexities of the
biological aspects of sensory processes are necessary to move this field forward. To attain intuitive
manipulation of prosthetics, this sensory information must be incorporated into an intelligent control
model. A model that is adaptive to the user's impairment level, intentions, and the complexity of the
task at hand and allows for user-prosthesis co-learning to meet each user's specific functionality
needs. I believe the Prosthetics and Orthotics CDT is the perfect programme for me to achieve my
aspirations because of its unmatched diverse research areas and cohort-based training which
naturally offers a collaborative and interdisciplinary environment, with considerable clinical research
opportunities. Altogether, this will allow me to conduct research with translational value, which is
essential in ensuring that my research has practical and accessible applications. It will also give me
the opportunity to work with people from diverse academic backgrounds who have the same goal,
learn, and share different views on how to tackle the challenges in this field. I am particularly
interested in working with industry and users to achieve translational user-centred research projects
to better meet users' aspirations. Working with and testing end-users is vital to me because I aim to
study and advance intelligent sensors combined with a learning-based control model that adapts to
each individual to create the ultimate body part tailored to their needs. As part of the CDT in
Prosthetics and Orthotics, I will be able to leverage my solid academic background and research
experience in Biomedical Engineering to conduct research in these areas whilst furthering my
understanding of the fundamental clinical and industrial challenges in Prosthetics and Orthotics.