Postdoctoral Researcher in Neurorehabilitation Robotics (H1030)

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100%, Singapore, fixed-term

ETH Zurich is one of the leading universities of the world with a strong focus on science and engineering. In 2010 it established the Singapore-ETH Centre (SEC) in collaboration with the National Research Foundation (NRF) to do interdisciplinary research on pressing problems.

In collaboration with the National University of Singapore (NUS), the Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Duke - NUS, the National Health Group (NHG), National University Health System (NUHS), and SingHealth, SEC is undertaking a research programme on "Future Health Technologies (FHT)". It addresses some immanent health challenges by developing a future-oriented Mobile Digital Health Concept that tackles the increase in patients suffering from chronic diseases such as diabetes, obesity and stroke, as a consequence of a rapidly ageing population with mobile digital technologies, covering the value chain from acute care to patients' private homes.

Project background

The Connected Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies Module (Module 3) is developing enabling technologies that provide minimally-supervised high-quality interventions via a “rehab gym” equipped with clinical intelligence. Available technologies include new robotic devices and brain-computer interfaces that are tailored to the individual patient’s needs, linking unobtrusive technical assessments via multiple sensors with interventions in real or virtual environments.

Module 3 develops and validates new tools for quantifying short-term and long-term rehabilitation outcomes (i.e. via specifically designed wearables, instrumented objects and automated assessments, which potentially interact with an FHT App) (Project 1), delivering rehabilitation training at all stages of the rehabilitation process and in a minimally supervised manner (i.e. via new therapy modalities using brain-machine interfaces and virtual reality (Project 2) as well as mobile and wearable rehabilitation robotics (Project 3)) and providing assistance in permanently impaired patients (i.e. via new wearable assistive robotics) (Project 4). We will, for the first time, develop and evaluate a technology-supported therapy and assistance concept for the upper extremity which spans across the continuum of care, i.e. extending from application at the bedside, to rehabilitation services provided by community centres and finally to patients’ homes. The collected data from devices across all projects will enable the identification of biomarkers for predicting recovery and treatment response, development of a personalised long-term care concept for stroke patients and estimation of social and economic long-term outcomes (i.e. value estimation).

Job description

As a Postdoctoral Researcher in Neurorehabilitation Robotics, you will be responsible for leading research team that aims to develop, test, and validate new stroke neurorehabilitation technologies, with a specific focus on robotic devices for upper limb therapy and assistance, as well as mobile and/or robotic devices for assessing upper limb sensorimotor impairments (Project 1, Project 3, and Project 4). In addition, you will be responsible to co-supervise PhD students and support the overall coordination of Module 3. This work will be performed in collaboration with our research partners at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) in Singapore.

Your tasks will include:

• Supervise and implement an already planned large-scale clinical study related to assessing and predicting the time-course of upper limb sensorimotor recovery using conventional and digital health technologies (e.g., https://youtu.be/TyJyd5uVN68 , https://youtu.be/jmWdwJ00onU ) – Project 1 
• Plan and supervise clinical studies related to an upper limb rehabilitation intervention with an advanced hand rehabilitation robot (https://youtu.be/eC8XhVHVcKA ) – Project 3
• Plan and supervise further technical developments and user tests for an advanced robotic hand exoskeleton (https://youtu.be/PZiQg0wIxQM ) – Project 4
• Plan and supervise the Health Technology Assessment of the robotic rehabilitation interventions 
• Advise and mentor an inter-disciplinary team of four PhD students and two engineers
• Lead the dissemination of research outcomes at conferences and in peer-reviewed journals
• Support the principal investigators in coordinating research and reporting efforts of Module 3

Your profile

You will have:

• A PhD in Rehabilitation Robotics, Biomedical Engineering, Neurorehabilitation or related fields
• At least 5 years of experience in a research environment (PhD and/or Postdoctoral researcher level) with specific experience with student supervision, team management, as well as grant and publication writing.
• A strong interest in developing and applying robotic technologies for neurorehabilitation, regularly interacting with relevant stakeholders in the field (e.g., patients, clinicians), and mentoring and advising PhD students
• Extensive experience in experimental technology-based neurorehabilitation research with human participants, including study design, ethics application, data collection, and data analysis
• Strong technical understanding of neurorehabilitation robotics (e.g., in terms of mechanical design and control)
• Good understanding of basic clinical principles and mechanisms of post-stroke neurorehabilitation
• Knowledge of important considerations for obtaining high quality data in challenging environments
• Strong verbal and written communication skills in English
• Scientific curiosity and motivation to perform scientifically rigorous experimental work
• Optional: Experience with advanced signal processing and data mining techniques for analyzing biological signals (biomarkers) as well as knowledge in machine learning and computational modeling

Singapore-ETH Centre

The Singapore-ETH Centre provides a multicultural and interdisciplinary environment to researchers working on diverse themes focussed on sustainable and liveable cities, resilient urban systems, and patient-centric healthcare. The centre is home to a community of over 100 doctoral, postdoctoral and professorial researchers working in three main programmes: Future Cities Laboratory, Future Resilient Systems, and Future Health Technologies.

Working, teaching and research at Singapore-ETH Centre