Signed in as:
filler@godaddy.com
Dr. Vivian Mushahwar, Director
Dr. Vivian Mushahwar is the Director of the SMART Network. She is also
a Canada Research Chair (Tier 1) in Functional Restoration and a Professor
in the Department of Medicine, Division of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry at the University of Alberta.
Her work focuses on developing intelligent wearable and implantable neural prostheses that restore mobility and prevent secondary complications.
She also focuses on developing creative rehabilitation interventions that are
both efficacious and cost-saving. She pioneered the development of micro-implants for stimulating the spinal cord in restoring standing and walking after paralysis,
as well as the development of the wearable garments, Smart-e-Pants and the SOCC, for preventing pressure injuries and deep vein thrombosis.
Dr. Mahdi Tavakoli, Scientific Co-Lead
Mahdi Tavakoli is a Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Alberta, Canada. He received his Ph.D. degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Western Ontario, Canada, in 2005. In 2006, he was a post-doctoral researcher at Canadian Surgical Technologies and Advanced Robotics (CSTAR), Canada. In 2007-2008, he was an NSERC Post-Doctoral Fellow at Harvard University, USA. Dr. Tavakoli’s research interests broadly involve the areas of robotics and systems control. Specifically, his research focuses on rehabilitation robotics and image-guided surgery. Dr. Tavakoli is the lead author of Haptics for Teleoperated Surgical Robotic Systems (World Scientific, 2008). He is a Senior Member of IEEE, Specialty Chief Editor for Frontiers in Robotics and AI (Robot Design Section), and an Associate Editor for the International Journal of Robotics Research, IEEE Transactions on Medical Robotics and Bionics, IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, IEEE TMECH/AIM Emerging Topics Focused Section, and Journal of Medical Robotics Research.
Michelle whaling, Operations Manager
As the Operations Manager for the SMART Network, Michelle works with the four cores, Principal Investigators, Research Services Office and other stakeholder members to implement the appropriate framework for planning, prioritizing and developing the network with a business unit that can move products towards commercialization.
She is also the lead Quality Assurance for our pre-clinical testing facility at the University of Alberta. She has brought many years of experience to help develop the SMART Network’s GLP facility as well as implement a quality management system into existing labs.
Dr. Martin Ferguson-Pell, External Relations CO-Director
Dr. Martin Ferguson-Pell is a Biomedical Engineer and credentialed Clinical Scientist. He has dedicated his academic career to the study of secondary complications of physical disability and their underlying causes. He has also been advancing the implementation of technologies and processes to enable rehabilitation assessments of patients in rural settings.
As the designer and developer of the Rehabilitation Robotics Laboratory (RRL, the Virtual Reality and Robotics Core of the SMART Network) in the Edmonton Clinic
Health Academy, his team creates advanced virtual reality and augmented reality systems for a wide range of applications in healthcare. The RRL also uses a unique virtual reality ergometer for the biomechanical and physiological conditions faced by long-term wheelchair users and elite wheelchair athletes.
Dr. Ferguson-Pell is one of the founders of the SMART Network.
Dr. Nizam Ahmed, Clinical Co-lead
Dr. Nizam Ahmed obtained his MD from Dow Medical College in Pakistan as a Gold Medalist. He completed his internship in Internal Medicine and residency in Neurology at the New York Medical College and Medical College of Wisconsin respectively, followed by a Fellowship in Epilepsy and Neurophysiology at the Yale University School of Medicine.
He is currently a Professor in the Department of Medicine’s Division of Neurology at the University of Alberta. He is also the Medical Director of the Clinical Neurophysiology Lab and Visiting Faculty at the Dow University of Health Sciences in Karachi, Pakistan. He is a past President of the Canadian League against Epilepsy.
His main areas of focus include epilepsy and epilepsy surgery, electroencephalography (EEG), biological signal processing, and machine learning applied to EEG and MRI. His research projects include computer assisted diagnosis of epileptogenic lesion on the MRI of brain, machine learning and signal processing of the EEG signal and telehealth.
Dr. Jacqueline Hebert, Education Co-lead
Dr. Jacqueline Hebert is Professor in the Division of Physical Medicine
& Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, and Research Affiliate at the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital. She is also the Program Director for NSERC CREATE in Sensory Motor Rehabilitative Technology (SMART)—a world-class, industry-informed, interdisciplinary training program for industry-ready grads in the rapidly expanding field of next-generation adaptive rehabilitation technology.
Her research team studies advanced motor control and sensory feedback systems for upper limb myoelectric devices, under a group of projects known as Bionic Limbs for Improved Natural Control(BLINC). The BLINC Lab is an interdisciplinary lab where medical, science, and engineering researchers collaborate to improve the control and performance of robotic prostheses.
Michel Gauthier
Michel Gauthier obtained a BSc in Mechanical Engineering in 1985 from the University of Alberta, and a Diploma in Computer Engineering Technology in 1989 from Westerra Institute of Technology. Michel has worked as a Research Associate in Neuroscience since 1989.
His work has focused on the development of microcontroller based wearable neural prostheses and a variety of sensors and other laboratory devices. Michel is also in charge of operating the SMART Network's 3D micromachining exciplex laser and the CNC milling machine.
Don Wilson
Don Wilson graduated from Biomedical Engineering Technology at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology in 2019. Outside of his experience in the field of medical technology, Don brings skills such as 3D Printing, CNC machining, Android app development, Bluetooth communication, CAD modeling and youthful ambition to the Device Development Lab.
Prior to Don's work in the Device Development Lab, he maintained and repaired medical devices in a hospital environment. His specialties are X-ray, mechanical ventilation and patient monitoring.
Outside the lab Don enjoys photography, cooking, interior design and keeping up to date with the latest and greatest in automobile technology.
Dr. Patricia Dolez
Dr. Patricia Dolez is an Assistant Professor in Textile Science in the Department
of Human Ecology at the University of Alberta. She holds an engineering degree
in Materials Science and a Ph.D. in Physics. Her expertise includes textiles, polymers, and composites. She is especially interested in the application of nanotechnologies, smart textiles, natural fibres, and recycled materials in personal protective equipment and other textile-based products as well as in the aging behavior of protective materials. Her research in the area of nanotechnologies includes the development of graphene-based end-of-life sensors for fire protective fabrics and multifunctionalized dual-electrospun nanocomposite nano-fibrous webs for protection against chemical and biological hazards.
Dr. Dolez has authored more than 100 articles in books, scientific and technical journals, and conference proceedings. She is also the editor of a book entitled “Nanoengineering: Global Approaches to Health & Safety Issues” published
in 2015 by Elsevier, and co-editor of a book entitled "Advanced Characterization and Testing of Textiles" published in 2017 also by Elsevier. She is a member of
the Canadian mirror committee on ISO/TC 229 on nanotechnologies and chairs
the Canadian mirror committee on ISO/TC 94 SC13 on protective clothing.
She is the Vice-President of the Institute of Textile Science.
Dirk Everaert
Dirk Everaert received his undergraduate degree in physical therapy from the University of Leuven, Belgium. He specialized in orthopedic physical therapy, more specifically spinal manipulative therapy and research on paraspinal soft tissue biomechanics at Emory University, Georgia, USA. He received his PhD in Motor Rehabilitation and Physiotherapy from the University of Leuven, Belgium in 2000.
As a research associate for Dr. Stein and Dr. Mushahwar the University of Alberta, he was involved in clinical trials on functional electrical stimulation (FES) to restore walking in people with neurological conditions (WalkAide footdrop stimulator and FES-brace walking), and to prevent deep venous thrombosis. He was involved in animal experiments using implantation of recording electrodes in the dorsal root gangling to study locomotion, implantation of intraspinal microstimulation devices to restore locomotion after spinal cord injury in animals, and in the preparations for the first human trial.
Quinn Boser
Quinn has completed a degree in Mechanical Engineering with a Biomedical Option as well as an MSc in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Alberta. During her MSc, supervised by Dr. Jacqueline Hebert, she explored the use of eye tracking in assessing the behaviour of upper limb prosthesis users during goal directed tasks.
Quinn is currently working as a research assistant with the BLINC Lab, where she continues to work on interdisciplinary teams devoted to improving upper limb prosthetic devices.
Rod Gramlich
Rod Gramlich provides technical support for Dr. Vivian Mushahwar's lab. He designs, builds and maintains all electrical and mechanical needs of the lab.
While he has worked with Dr. Mushahwar for the past 5 years, he has been in the University of Alberta's neuroscience group since its inception.
He considers work a hobby rather than a job, and when away from work finds ample time for other hobbies including golfing, gardening and curling.
Madelene Ho
BSc Specialization in Cell Biology undergraduate, Madelene first joined the Alberta Neuroimmunology and Pain Laboratory as an Intern Research Assistant not only to gain more laboratory experience and techniques, but to be part of the front lines in Multiple Sclerosis research.
Now in her final year, she continues her duties as research assistant as well as performs her own research projects, including characterizing microglia activity/activation during remyelination and testing CD33 to improve myelin regeneration in MS.
Esmat Naikyar
Esmat Naikyar collaborates with the Advanced Human-Computer Interface (AHCI) (Formerly known as Advanced Man-Machine Interface - AMMI) Laboratory at the University of Alberta. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of Alberta and has extensive research and development experience from his time at Coanda Research & Development.
He is currently the founder and CEO of Naiad Lab Inc., a spinoff company out of the AHCI Laboratory. Naiad Lab is heavily involved in utilizing AI and advanced data analytics to develop Virtual Clinics. Esmat has extensive experience in management, planning and system development from working in various R&D environments. Esmat is also a co-founder of Naik AR, a start-up which utilizes AR/VR to enable virtual fitting for e-commerce. Mr. Naikyar’s deep passion for innovation and product development led him down the path of entrepreneurship.
Tricia Kent
After attending the University of British Columbia to obtain a BSc in Biochemistry in 2010, Tricia went on to complete an MSc in Experimental Medicine at McGill University in 2014. Her research focused on genetic regulation of hepatic iron metabolism, focusing on upstream regulation of hepcidin.
Tricia joined the Todd Lab and SMART Network in May 2016 as the lab's biotechnologist and lab coordinator. Her current research interest is tackling protocol development for student projects and keeping the lab running smoothly.
Mayank Rehani
Mayank Rehani is a research associate and study coordinator in the BLINC Lab. He graduated with an MSc in Rehabilitation Science at the University of Alberta in 2013, after completing a BSc with Double Major in Biological Sciences and Psychology (Science) in 2008. He also completed the Project Management Certificate program at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology in 2017 and has training in biostatistics.
His responsibilities include statistical analyses of several BLINC Lab projects, consulting with students and BLINC Lab investigators on the appropriate statistical tools and procedures for their studies, liaising with granting organizations and Research Services Office, aiding with research grant proposals including developing budgets and justification, acquiring Research Ethics Board approvals for BLINC Lab projects, ensuring that all areas of the BLINC Lab meet the Environment, Health and Safety standards at the University of Alberta, organizing the BLINC Lab Seminars, managing the knowledge translation and community outreach activities that the BLINC Lab undertakes, orienting new students and staff, and taking care of general administration needs of the BLINC Lab.
His research interests include osseointegration for lower- and upper-limb amputation, embodiment of prosthetic devices, and developing functional evaluation tools to quantify prosthetic performance.
Outside of the BLINC Lab, Mayank consults with the Canadian Obesity Network and wrote Canada’s first Report Card on Access to Obesity Treatment for Adults in 2017. He is the recipient of the Innovation in Rehabilitationaward at the 2013 Alberta Rehabilitation Awards.
Prior to the BLINC Lab, Mayank worked in the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital and has managed research projects for the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, Canadian Armed Forces, Alberta Correctional Services, and the Canadian Obesity Network.
Mayank enjoys collaborating with others and thrives in diverse and enthusiastic teams. Outside of the lab, Mayank enjoys teaching and mentoring high school students, traveling, swimming, cooking, and playing the sitar.
Riley Dawson
Riley is a computer engineer with the ACE and BLINC labs and works extensively on the Gaze and Movement Assessment software platform. He graduated with a BSc in Computer Engineering – Software Option at the University of Alberta in 2014. His educational background includes extensive exposure to biological sciences and mechanical engineering, and he is currently pursuing a combined MBA/MEng degree. Riley’s work experience spans a diverse subset of fields, from full-stack web development to desktop application implementation and design.
When not playing with some new tech release, Riley is probably brushing up on his Japanese and French, playing music, or busy not getting enough sleep at a hackathon.
MIchael (Rory) Dawson
Rory is the lead research engineer in the Bionic Limbs for Improved Natural Control (BLINC) Lab, and is appointed to the department of Medicine – Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Alberta. Rory directly drives and coordinates the engineering projects in the lab related to prosthetics and orthotics including design of training tools, sensory feedback systems, and research platforms. He plays a key role as an interface between research at the University of Alberta and clinical implementation at the Glenrose ensuring technologies are clinically relevant and translatable.
His research interests include 3D printing, robotics, and device design as well as motor, sensory, and machine learning.
