Document text
Principal Investigator: Seungmoon Song
Organization: NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY
Fiscal Year: 2024
Award: $235,676
Funding agency: National Institute on Aging
Project Summary / Abstract
The candidate's long-term objective is to enable optimal and customized intervention to improve mobility. Mo-
bility is an essential physical activity for maintaining an active lifestyle and functional independence and is a
common issue for older adults, where musculoskeletal diseases are the leading cause of mobility limitations.
While robotic orthoses, or exoskeletons, promise to improve mobility, the progress in research is slow as eval-
uation on the outcome of gait assistance currently requires extensive experiments with human subjects. In this
project, the candidate proposes to develop a computer simulation framework that can predict the gait dynamics
and performance of different ankle-exoskeleton assistances. The study will develop and evaluate how ankle-
exoskeleton assistance affects metabolic energy consumption, walking speed, and pain during walking in
healthy young and older adults as well as in older adults with knee osteoarthritis. The candidate will develop
the simulation framework based on a computational neuromechanical human locomotion model he has previ-
ously developed, and collect human gait data using an ankle-exoskeleton emulator developed in his laboratory
to validate the predictions of the framework. In addition to the simulation framework, the study will deliver an-
kle-exoskeleton strategies that can effectively assist healthy young and older adults and those with knee osteo-
arthritis to walk more efficiently, fast, and with less pain. During the K99 phase, the candidate will receive train-
ing in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University. The mentoring team consists of four
experts who can provide training in experimental human biomechanics, computer simulation of human move-
ment, musculoskeletal diseases in older adults, and gerontology. An advisory committee with three members
will provide additional expertise in optimality principles in human motion, and in non-clinical needs and surgical
trauma in the senior population. The training will prepare the candidate to become a leading independent in-
vestigator in the multidisciplinary fields of motor control and rehabilitation engineering, who produces theoreti-
cal and clinical impacts on improving mobility.
Terms: <21+ years old><Abnormal gait><Adult><Adult Human><Advisory Committees><Affect><Aging><Ankle><Assistive Technology><Behavior><Biomechanics><Cessation of life><Clinical><Computer Simulation><Computer based Simulation><Computer software><Consumption><Data><Death><Decline in mobility><Decrease in mobility><Decreased mobility><Development><Diminished mobility><Energy consumption><Engineering><Environment><Evaluation><Fall prevention><Future><Gait><Gait abnormality><Gait disorder><Gait disturbances><Gait dysfunction><Gait impairment><Gerontology><Goals><Human><Intervention><Intervention Strategies><Investigators><Joints><Knee Osteoarthritis><Knowledge><Laboratories><Literature><Locomotion><Measures><Mechanics><Mentors><Metabolic><Mobility decline><Mobility impairment><Modeling><Modern Man><Morbidity><Morbidity - disease rate><Motion><Movement><Muscle><Muscle Tissue><Musculoskeletal><Musculoskeletal Diseases><NIH><National Institutes of Health><Neurologic Ambulation Disorders><Neurologic Gait Disorders><Neurologic Gait Dysfunction><Neurologic Locomotion Disorders><Neuromechanics><Operative Procedures><Operative Surgical Procedures><Orthosis><Orthotic Devices><Outcome><Pain><Painful><Pathology><Patients><Performance><Phase><Physical activity><Physiology><Population><Process><Reduced mobility><Reduction in mobility><Regio tarsalis><Research><Research Personnel><Researchers><Robotics><Science><Self-Help Devices><Software><Speed><Surgical><Surgical Interventions><Surgical Procedure><Task Forces><Testing><Torque><Training><Trauma><United States National Institutes of Health><Universities><Validation><Walking><Walking impairment><Work><active life style><active lifestyle><active living><adult youth><adulthood><advisory team><age associated decline><age dependent decline><age related decline><assisted device><assistive device><biomechanical><body movement><computational simulation><computer cluster><computerized simulation><decline with age><developmental><environmental change><exoskeletal><exoskeleton><experience><experiment><experimental research><experimental study><experiments><falls><functional independence><functional loss><gerontologic><human subject><improved><improved mobility><innovate><innovation><innovative><interventional strategy><knee OA><knee joint OA><knee joint osteoarthritis><mechanic><mechanical><member><metabolic rate><mobility enhancement><mobility improvement><model-based simulation><models and simulation><motor control><motor rehab><motor rehabilitation><motor rehabilitative therapy><multidisciplinary><muscular><musculoskeletal disorder><neuromechanical><neuromusculoskeletal><older adult><older adulthood><open source><optimized mobility><orthotics><outcome prediction><pain reduction><powered exoskeleton><preventing falls><reduce pain><rehab engineering><rehabilitation engineering><simulation><surgery><validations><walking pace><walking speed><young adult><young adulthood>