Advanced Platform Technology Center
APT Center Researchers Receive NSF Grant
Advanced Platform Technology Center Researchers Receive National Science Foundation Grant for Research Benefiting Patients with Traumatic Brain Injury
Researchers with Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) and the Advanced Platform Technology (APT) Center of Excellence at the Louis Stokes Cleveland Veterans Affairs Medical Center (LSCVAMC) have recently received a $198,265 award from the National Science Foundation to continue research on integrated game technology for the cognitive assessment and rehabilitation of individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Kiju Lee, PhD, is the Principal Investigator on the 18-month study, entitled “SIG Blocks: Tangible Game Technology for Cognitive Assessment and Rehabilitation of People with Traumatic Brain Injuries.”
This Accelerating Innovation Technology Translation project aims to translate from prior work, filling the gaps in an integrated, tangible game technology, called SIG-Blocks, for cognitive assessment and rehabilitation of individuals with a traumatic brain injury (TBI).
“The specific aims are to improve on the current SIG-Block technology for people with TBI, and assess its technical functionality, usability, and clinical effectiveness in order to evaluate the market value and commercial opportunities,” says Dr. Lee. “An in-depth study will evaluate existing technology and consider timely technical improvements on hardware design, user interface, and online game development. A study on patients will test the improved technology for TBI patients.”
TBI is a principal cause of death and disability affecting more than 2 million Americans and costing more than $56 billion each year. About 5.3 million Americans suffer from chronic TBI-related problems, which are often manifested by a combination of physical, cognitive, and behavioral problems. Early diagnosis and timely and continuous effort on cognitive rehabilitation is essential to increase chances for improved symptoms and long-term survival in individuals with TBI. Successful completion of the proposed research will be a pathway towards commercialization of the SIG-Blocks technology as a low-cost, long-term care solution for TBI patients who require continuous cognitive assessment and training.
The potential impact of this technology can reach beyond the TBI population. Older people with cognitive declines and young children with developmental disabilities may benefit from by this technology. SIG-Blocks can also be transformed into an educational tool by integrating STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) contents into the game design.
The delivery of the traditional cognitive assessment and rehabilitation for individuals with TBI faces several challenges. These include high costs due to clinician time, limited access to professional clinicians in hard-to-reach areas, and limited generalization of measurements due to human errors. The SIG-Blocks technology will bring potential breakthroughs in the field of computerized cognitive assessment and rehabilitation for TBI by enabling fully automated, real-time, and remote administration of the test or training. Together, these will provide improved quality and quantity of the measurable data, and allow dynamic approaches to address individual differences.
“This technology distinguishes itself from other existing technology-based approaches by employing augmented physical objects for tangible manipulation,” says Dr. Lee. “This enables assessing and training visual-motor integration, hand-eye coordination, and spatial cognition skills in addition to specific cognitive domains, such as memory, problem solving, attention, and visual perception.”
Dr. Lee also says that while several sensor-embedded block technologies exist, none of them are specifically designed for clinical applications. SIG-Blocks also utilize low-cost hardware and software technologies to achieve equivalent, if not more advanced, level of sensing and communication capabilities compared to other systems.
Dr. Lee is a Nord Distinguished Assistant Professor in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Case Western Reserve University and a lead investigator with the APT Center at the Louis Stokes Cleveland Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Mr. Michael Allan is a senior licensing officer with Case Western Reserve University’s Technology Transfer office.
About the APT Center: The APT Center is one of 17 designated Centers of Excellence in the Rehabilitation Research and Development (RR&D) Service of the US Department of Veterans Affairs. Established in 2005 as a collaboration between the LSCDVAMC and CWRU, the APT Center focuses on applying the most recent advancements in microelectronics, material science, microfabrication, wireless communication and mechanical design to the pressing medical needs of disabled veterans, and translating them into viable clinical options. Investigators, project staff and support specialists associated with the Center concentrate their professional effort on translational research in the areas of: Prosthetics and Orthotics, Health Monitoring and Maintenance, Neural Interfacing, and Emerging Enabling Technologies. Clinician-researchers associated with the Center include some of the “Best Doctors in America” as named by Cleveland Magazine and Best Doctors, Inc. as well as multiple recipients of prestigious Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), the NIH Director’s Innovation Award, and VA Career or Senior Career Research Scientist Awards. APT Center related activities have resulted in more than 60 invention disclosures and 15 patented or patent-pending concepts and prototypes that will serve the clinical needs of veterans with sensory, motor and cognitive deficits or limb loss.
