Award Data

This Phase 1 project enhances safety and independence for wheelchair and scooter passengers riding in fixed route transit and increases quality of life and community participation through improved accessibility to vehicle safety systems for individuals with mobility disabilities. The goal is to create and demonstrate the feasibility of a novel forward facing wheelchair passenger station (FF-WPS) b ...

The goal of this project is to provide real-time monitoring and data logging to help both the patient and clinician determine if and when a scoliosis brace is being worn effectively. Despite widespread use of bracing for treatment of scoliosis, its efficacy remains unproven. Studies have indicated that user compliance is a large factor in the efficacy of scoliosis brace treatment. Two factors comp ...

This Phase I project develops an accessible geosocial networking (AGN) application for the iPhone with Voice Over with the goal to connect people with visual disabilities with other people in their proximate environment while employing a revolutionary use of the positioning and connectivity technology built into mainstream cell phones. By capitalizing on the ubiquity of mobile phones with GPS, cel ...

This project establishes the feasibility and potential for commercialization of an arm rehabilitation device, Resonating Arm Exerciser (RAE), appropriate for use by individuals with severe physical disabilities, which is safe to use, and provides a therapeutic benefit without the supervision of a rehabilitation therapist while remaining affordable. The RAE device temporarily converts a wheelchair ...

This project develops a music-based therapeutic device, MusicGlove, for at-home rehabilitation and assessment of hand function in individuals with hand-related disabilities as the result of stroke. Inspired by the popular video game, Guitar Hero, MusicGlove motivates individuals to practice functional gripping movements to play a custom computer game thereby inducing significant improvements in ha ...

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) are severe neurodevelopmental disabilities characterized by deficits in social and communication skills and the presence of restrictive, repetitive behaviors. For the 80 percent of individuals with ASDs who speak, prosody—the rhythm, stress, and intonation of speech—is among the most noticeable and chronic impairments. Prosodic speech deficits impede social int ...

This project team is developing a prototype of the Planning Execution Assistant and Trainer (PEAT), an application (app) for mobile phones and tablets to provide cues and support to non-verbal students with ASD in special education settings. Students will carry and use iPhones at all times as part of this intervention, both in and out of school. PEAT will support students in achieving greater inde ...

MANY DISABLED INDIVIDUALS ARE CURRENTLY BENEFITTING FROM THEFIELD OF THERAPY CALLED THERAPEUTIC RECREATION. EVERY MAJORREHABILITATION CENTER HAS A SEPARATE AND GROWING RECREATION THERAPY DEPARTMENT AS THIS FIELD OF THERAPY GAINS RECOGNI- HAVE SPECIAL EQUIPMENT IN ORDER TO PARTICIPATE. THE DIFFICULTY IN FINDING SUCH EQUIPMENT IS PERSONALLY UNDERSTOOD BY THE PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR, WHO WAS PARALYZED ...

THE PROPOSED WORK PROVIDES AN INTEGRATION OF THE ELECTRONIC DELIVERY TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPED THROUGH THE U.S. ARMY RESEARCHINSTITUTE FOR THE ARMY'S BASIC SKILLS EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM, AND THE NEEDS OF THE CIVILIAN POPULATION IN ADULT LITERACY/ BASIC SKILLS EDUCATION. TESTED CONCEPTS USED IN THE HAND- HELD TUTOR THAT HAVE PROVEN EFFECTIVE IN THE TEACHING OF SPECIALIZED VOCABULARY TO SOLDIERS IN THE ARMY ...

BPA HAS IDENTIFIED THREE POTENTIAL AUDIENCES FOR RESPITE GUIDE MATERIALS:1)THE FAMILIES OF CHILDREN WITH DISABILITY 2)RESPITE PROVIDERS, AND 3) REFERRAL SOURCES. IN THIS PROJ- ECT, WE PROPOSE TO INVESTIGATE THE INFORMATION AND SUPPORT NEEDS OF THESE THREE GROUPS. WE'LL CLASSIFY THE MODELS OF RESPITE SERVICE CURRENTLY IN EXISTENCE, FOCUSING PARTICULAR LY ON EFFECTIVE AND INNOVATIVE PRACTICES. THROU ...