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Aiding assistive technology
Center awarded $4.75 million grant to continue its work
By LOIS BAKER
Contributing Editor
The Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Technology Transfer (T_RERC) at UB has received a $4.75 million, five-year grant from the National Institute on Disability Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) to research, evaluate, transfer and commercialize assistive devices for persons with disabilities.
LidsOff™ Automatic Jar Opener
The grant was announced today at a news conference by President John B. Simpson.
The T_RERC, which is beginning its third competitive five-year grant cycle, facilitates introduction of new and improved products into the marketplace to meet employment, education, recreation and independent-living needs of people with disabilities. This latest grant brings total federal funding of the center to $16.75 million.
Since its inception, the T_RERC, with its community-based partner, the Western New York Independent Living Center, has put 21 new products into the hands of consumers.
One of the most successful recent examples of T_RERC's collaboration with industry is the Black & Decker® LidsOff™ Automatic Jar Opener, which was introduced in June 2003. The jar opener is a boon to persons with poor grip strength.
The center is one unit under the umbrella of UB's Center for Assistive Technology, which is part of the School of Public Health and Health Professions. Maurizio Trevisan, interim dean of the school and a professor in the Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, said the renewal is a clear indication of the ongoing importance of the center's work.
"The fact that the center is entering its third five-year grant cycle validates the outstanding work done to date by center investigators and staff, and their insights into the future," Trevisan said.
"The grant is particularly gratifying because it builds on UB's pioneering work in the field of assistive devices and technology, which exemplifies the overarching mission of the School of Public Health and Health Professions—to improve the health and quality of life of Western New Yorkers and residents of New York State."
Stephen M. Bauer, clinical assistant professor of rehabilitation science and director of the T_RERC, said the new grant will support several new endeavors.
"In the next five years, the center will carry out four development projects aimed at introducing new products into the marketplace, and complete four research projects that will advance the state of the art of the technology transfer discipline," said Bauer.
Three of the development projects will continue the center's work in shepherding promising products to the marketplace, he noted. Researchers will concentrate on validating technology needs of the assistive-technology industry, finding solutions to those needs, and integrating consumers' functional requirements into new products.
The final development project will involve collaboration with the UB School of Informatics, Bauer said. This project will help the national network of Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers and the broader community of technology-transfer organizations make better use of technology-transfer methods and knowledge.
Three of the T_RERC research projects will focus on defining effective technology-transfer practices, Bauer said. Researchers will analyze case studies of especially successful products, review federal technology-transfer programs for effectiveness, and conduct market research on relevant industry sectors.
The fourth research project will involve laboratory and home trials of transferred and marketed products to assess the value and utility of these products to consumers.
"Collectively, these projects will generate new knowledge necessary to improve on the theory and practice of technology transfer, both for the field of assistive technology and beyond," Bauer said.
The new grant builds on the center's past success in bringing products to the marketplace that help solve lifestyle and safety problems for persons with disabilities.
In addition to the Black & Decker® LidsOff™ Automatic Jar Opener, new products developed by the center include:
The "Accenda Accessible Remote Control," another new product, is a voice-operated, remote-control unit for home-entertainment systems, including DVD and TV equipment, VCRs and stereos. The Accenda allows persons with impaired vision and mobility to control all functions of these products with voice commands.
The PowerCheq™, a revolutionary battery-management system for power wheelchairs and scooters, extends battery life up to 300 percent and increases the daily operating time by more than 20 percent without increasing the battery size. The PowerCheq™ saves the user hundreds of dollars annually and significantly improves user safety, Bauer said.
"UpStop," a newly patented braking system for manual wheelchairs, engages a set of brakes automatically when the occupant begins to exit, preventing the wheelchair from rolling forward or backward and dislodging the occupant.
Bauer said several more products, some of which will improve radically the way persons with disabilities live their lives, are in the pipeline and will advance to the marketplace with the help of the center's new grant.