Intelligent systems for the assessment, diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients

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My proposal is aimed at generating new knowledge and technology for the sensory-motor assessment of stroke patients. I propose to increase the training of students in the interdisciplinary areas of computing and neuroscience, encompassing research in robotics and computing that will be applied to the diagnosis, monitoring and treatment of stroke patients. The research will involve collaboration with an emerging company, BKIN Technologies, in the development of software to support their robotic technology. Results of the research will aid clinicians in the planning of rehabilitation therapy for stroke patients. In particular, I plan to: 1) develop computational tools that analyze, visualize and aid in the interpretation of large amounts of real-time, robot-generated diagnosistic data for stroke patients; 2) apply intelligent systems to monitor and assist in the diagnosis of sensory-motor impairment in stroke patients; and 3) develop an automated reasoning system to plan optimal rehabilitation therapy for stroke patients based on the retrieval and adaptation of previous treatment plans. The proposed research is an integration of a novel robotic device with "intelligent" systems to add a new dimension to the applicability of the robot. This integration is crucial for the enhancement, acceptance, and use of our technology as an automated clinical assessment tool. A primary outcome of the research will be an improved quality of life for stroke patients, as a result of increased accuracy in assessment and improved planning of rehabilitation therapy. It will benefit Canada through commercialization of the resulting technologies, and training of highly qualified personnel. In total, 4 PhD and 4 MSc students will be trained with specific skills in the areas of data mining, data management and knowledge discovery.