GARDE: Developing a World-Class Rehabilitation Engineering Workforce in America's Heartland

1159626PI: Nelson， Burnfield和guu这个项目的目标是在五年内每年将两到四个本科机械工程设计团队与残疾人作为客户进行配对，目标是创造新的设备来帮助康复和/或日常生活。内布拉斯加大学林肯分校提出的高级顶点设计项目有几个目标，所有目标都集中在利用这些定向的本科顶点项目，为康复工程领域培养一支训练有素、技术熟练的工程劳动力。目标是：1)为本科生提供参与社会相关设计项目的机会，重点是帮助/康复残疾人士促进日常生活；2)培养大学生的团队合作能力和项目管理能力；3)利用传播和外展机会，吸引更多的女学生进入工程学科；4)为本科生介绍工程设计背景下的创业精神。智力优秀生将与麦当娜康复医院合作，确定残疾客户，为他们设计专门的辅助设备。他们将执行需求评估、头脑风暴和评估解决方案概念，并通过分析、原型和测试将他们的设计付诸实践。当学生学习和实施设计过程时，特别强调的是设计的企业家精神和传播。预计新的辅助技术将通过这一过程被创造出来，从而导致工程知识的进步。出版物和专利申请与学生参与作者的期望。更广泛的影响拟议项目的影响预计将非常广泛。这些活动的预期成果包括：1)提高本科生，尤其是女生在生物医学/机械工程及相关STEM领域从事职业和深造的兴趣；2)激发对思想和技术商业化的兴趣；3)以学生为作者的出版物；4)基于学生设计的知识产权披露。教育成果也将发表在工程教育期刊上。将通过当地K-12学校、童子军组织和学生俱乐部开展更多的宣传工作，帮助吸引更多不同类型的学生进入STEM学科。学生设计的技术成果也可能导致重要患者群体康复和治疗的积极变化。

1159626PI: Nelson, Burnfield and GuThis project aims to pair two to four undergraduate mechanical engineering design teams with disabled individuals as clients annually for five years, with the target of creating new devices to aid in rehabilitation and/or routine daily living. The proposed senior capstone design program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln has several objectives, all centered on using these directed undergraduate capstone projects to prepare a well trained and skilled engineering workforce in the area of rehabilitation engineering. The objectives are to: 1) provide opportunities for undergraduate students to become engaged in socially relevant design projects, with an emphasis on helping/rehabilitating individuals with disabilities to facilitate daily living; 2) cultivate teamwork and project management skills in undergraduate students; 3) leverage dissemination and outreach opportunities to attract more female students to engineering disciplines; and 4) provide undergraduate students with an introduction to entrepreneurship in the context of engineering design.Intellectual Merit Students will work with Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital to identify disabled clients for whom to design specialized assistive devices. They will perform needs assessment, brainstorm and evaluate solution concepts, and bring their designs to fruition through analysis, prototyping, and testing. As the students learn and implement the design process, special emphasis will be placed on entrepreneurship and dissemination of the designs. It is anticipated that new assistive technologies will be created through this process, leading to the advancement of engineering knowledge. Publications and patent applications with student participant authorship are expected. Broader Impacts The impact of the proposed project is expected to be very broad. The expected outcomes of these activities include: 1) increase in undergraduate students' interest to pursue careers and advanced studies in biomedical/mechanical engineering and related STEM fields, especially female students; 2) stimulation of an interest in commercialization of ideas and technology; 3) publications with the student participants as authors; 4) intellectual property disclosures based on the students' designs. The educational outcomes will also be published in engineering education journals. Additional disseminations efforts will be pursued through local K-12 schools, Scouting organizations, and student clubs, helping to attract more and diverse students into STEM disciplines. The technical outcomes of the students' designs may also lead to positive changes in rehabilitation and treatment for significant patient populations.