Evolution and Translation: Robotics Intelligence to Meet the End-User

Brenna Argall (Northwestern University and Shirley Ryan AbilityLab)

Abstract: As need increases, access decreases. It is a paradox that as human motor impairments become more severe, and increasing needs pair with decreasing motor ability, the very machines created to provide assistance become less and less accessible to operate with independence. My lab addresses this paradox by incorporating robotics autonomy and intelligence into machines that enable mobility and manipulation: leveraging robotics autonomy, to advance human autonomy. In this talk, I will discuss distinct challenges and opportunities within this domain, and overview a sampling of projects and studies within my lab.

Biography: Brenna Argall is a professor of Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science, and Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation at Northwestern University. She is founder and director of the assistive & rehabilitation robotics laboratory (argallab) at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab (formerly Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago), the #1-ranked rehabilitation hospital in the United States. The mission of the argallab is to advance human ability by leveraging robotics autonomy. Argall is a Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (2023), a recipient of the NSF CAREER award (2016), and one of the 40 under 40 by Crain's Chicago Business (2016). Her Ph.D. in Robotics (2009) was received from the Robotics Institute at Carnegie Mellon University, as well as her B.S. in Mathematics (2002). She has been a research fellow at the National Institutes of Health (2002–2004), the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL, 2009–2011), and the Wyss Center for Bio and Neuroengineering (2019) in Geneva, Switzerland.