Dr. Xiaorong Zhang Received an NSF CAREER award of $549,760 to develop the Next-Generation Neural-Machine Interfaces for Electromyography-Controlled Neurorehabilitation

Dr. Xiaorong Zhang, Assistant Professor of Computer Engineering, received an NSF Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award of a total $549,760 for five years (2018-2023) to develop the Next-Generation Neural-Machine Interfaces (NMI) for Electromyography (EMG)-Controlled Neurorehabilitation. While neurorehabilitation system design has progressed remarkably over several decades, no system is currently capable of meeting all desired technical specifications for commercial and clinical implementation. This project takes a computer engineering approach toward improving EMG-based NMI technology functionality and robustness. Software will be developed for managing the sensor status and real-time responses, and novel computing platforms will be implemented to handle the large-scale, data-intensive computations required for responsive neurorehabilitation applications. The project integrates research and education through several avenues: enhancement of undergraduate curricula with embedded research experiences, development of a massive open online course on neural machine interface, and initiation of a K-12 through community college outreach program.