CAREN Set Up
About ME
I am a researcher in NCB lab and pursuing M.Sc. in Biomedical Engineering at University of Alberta, Canada. I completed the B.Tech. in 2016 in Biological Sciences and Bioengineering with double major in Electrical Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India. I am a Mitacs Globalink fellowship recipient and Khorana scholarship recipient for summer research internships in Canada and USA respectively. I will be working full-time as a signal processing engineer with Pason Systems Inc. from Sep’18 onwards.
Supervisors:
Dr. Albert Vette
Dr. Hossein Rouhani
Research Interests:
Human biomechanics
Digital signal processing
Medical device development
PROJECT
Identification and Quantification of Underlying Mechanisms of Human Seated Balance using System Identification Technique
Elderly individuals and those affected by neuromuscular disorders are not able to independently maintain seated balance. As a result, these individuals are limited in performing daily living activities, and are susceptible to an increased risk of falling and secondary health complications. To develop therapies and targeted interventions for seated instability, it is important, however, to first identify the underlying control mechanisms of seated balance. In this context, classical system identification techniques are a promising tool for obtaining a quantitative description of these control mechanisms. I am quantifying, using advanced system identification techniques, the active and passive control mechanisms, the muscle activation dynamics, and the sensorimotor time delay in seated balance control of non-disabled individuals.
Detection of Muscle fatigue in cycling using surface electromyography
In this project, I am working towards detection of muscle fatigue in humans during cycling. Surface EMG is a reliable tool to assess the activity of a muscle. It is also implemented to detect the onset of muscle fatigue. I am developing algorithms that can detect the muscle fatigue using surface electromyography.
Instrumentation of Wobble Board for assessing and training human seated balance
In this project, I instrumented a wobble board, which can quantitatively assess and train human upper body stability. I have integrated electronics like IMU, Arduino and Lily Pad vibration board into the wobble board. In future, this device will be implemented as a rehabilitation tool for stroke survivors and wheelchair users.
Control Model
Currently, I am working with computer assisted rehabilitation environment (CAREN), Motion capture system, Force plates, and Electromyography system (EMG).
The CAREN is housed in the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital, Edmonton, AB, Canada. It has a robotic platform with six degrees of motion, three translations and three rotations. It also includes virtual reality screen to challenge the user’s sensory environment.
The motion capture system captures the body kinematics via infrared markers placed at specific location on the body. This system consists of various cameras that tracks the motion of the infrared markers.
The force plate measures the forces and moments along three principal axis. This information is used to determine reaction forces and build inverse dynamics models.
The EMG system measures the activity of the muscles. This system provides the information about the muscle recruitment, fatigue and torque generation for a particular movement.
AWARDS
Sept 2016 – April 2018: Mitacs Globalink Scholarship - University of Alberta, Edmonton AB, Canada
May 2015 – July 2015: Khorana Scholarship Program - Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
May 2014 – July 2014: Mitacs Globalink Scholarship - University of Alberta, Edmonton AB, Canada
publications
A Williams, A Kumawat, K Agarwal, Q Boser, A H. Vette. (2016). “An instrumented wobble board for assessing and training seated balance during continuous perturbations,” IEEE international conference on Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society.
Williams, A. D., Boser, Q. A., Kumawat, A. S., Agarwal, K., Rouhani, H., & Vette, A. H. (2018). Design and Evaluation of an Instrumented Wobble Board for Assessing and Training Dynamic Seated Balance. Journal of biomechanical engineering, 140(4), 041006.