Introduction to SimuStride
Three biomedical engineering students, Ben Broyles, Elissa Cimino, and Aidan Scott-Van Deusen, have created an award-winning innovation called SimuStride. This augmented reality rehabilitation system is designed to assist amputees regain mobility and combat phantom limb pain.
The Origins of SimuStride
Team member Ben Broyles recalled the origins of SimuStride, reflecting on how the project got here to be. "SimuStride began after we recognized a niche within the recovery process for lower-limb amputees. After surgery, patients often wait months before receiving a prosthetic leg, which may result in phantom limb pain and the lack of key motor skills." The team desired to bridge this gap and provides patients a greater sense of control over their rehabilitation.
How SimuStride Works
Using augmented reality, virtual elements are superimposed into the user’s physical environment, where they are going to see a virtual prosthesis attached to their residual limb. They can control the movement of their virtual leg based on real-time muscle activity captured by an electromyography sleeve. Combined with traditional non-weight-bearing exercises, SimuStride can offer a brand new level of each physical and neural therapy.
The Impact of SimuStride
The early, engaging, and immersive prosthesis visualization and training result in greater control and independence, empowering amputees and vastly improving their quality of life. SimuStride is a product of USTAAR, a University of Miami initiative that gives financial and resource support for student design projects, technology transfer, and the commercialization of startup corporations.
Recognition and Awards
SimuStride has been recognized with several awards, including $100,000 through the USTAAR competition and a $30,000 grant as a part of the College of Engineering’s Rothberg Catalyzer Pitch Competition. The team also won the highest honor and $30,000 in prizes on the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) InVenture Prize, an innovation competition where teams of undergraduates pitch their inventions or businesses to a live audience and a panel of judges.
The Value of Competitions
Competitions just like the ACC InVenture Prize are instrumental in driving and supporting innovation amongst students. Elissa echoed the worth competitions bring to enterprising students, saying, "Through these competitions, we secured the funding that allowed us to file a patent, complete product development, and prepare for a pilot study with amputees."
Future Plans
The team is looking toward the longer term and where they hope it’ll take SimuStride. "Our goal is to reinforce the standard of life for amputees around the globe by giving them greater confidence and control over their rehabilitation journey," Ben said. They hope to see SimuStride integrated into rehabilitation centers, VA hospitals, and eventually at-home therapy programs to remodel the best way people get well from limb loss.
Conclusion
SimuStride has the potential to make an actual impact in amputee rehabilitation, and the team is happy to proceed growing and developing their innovation. With the support of competitions and initiatives like USTAAR, SimuStride can grow to be a game-changer for the greater than 700,000 people within the United States living with above-knee amputations.
