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The Tibion Bionic Leg Wins the IERA 2013 Award
Karlsruhe, 8 May 2013 - The 9th annual Invention and Entrepreneurship Award in Robotics and Automation (IERA) was presented to Robert Horst, AlterG Inc. (former Tibion Corporation) for the Tibion Bionic Leg, at the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA) in Karlsruhe, Germany.
"The awards committee had a difficult choice to make with three excellent finalists. In the end, we picked the Tibion Bionic Leg for the following reason as noted in the citation for the award: 'A breakthrough product for rehabilitation of stroke patients at an affordable price, and offering a compelling story of an entrepreneurial journey with typical ups-and-downs culminating in a successful business'", commented Raj Madhavan, Vice President of IEEE-RAS Industrial Activities Board and Chairman of the Awards Committee.
"I was very happy to accept this award for the AlterG Bionic Leg because it acknowledges the growing importance of robotics for rehabilitation. It is gratifying to receive such a prestigious award after our team has worked so hard to perfect the Bionic Leg and introduce it into physical therapy. I am looking forward to working with the expanded AlterG team to accelerate the availability of Bionic Leg therapy and develop future innovations in rehabilitation robotics" stated Robert Horst of AlterG.
The Tibion Bionic Leg (TBL) is a wearable, battery-powered, robotic mobility assistance device. It is a robotic trainer that is activated by the patient's intent to move. The TBL is used by physical therapists for patients with impaired mobility and is designed to strengthen stance, improve gait, and enhance active motor learning while protecting its users.
Tibion Incorporated was founded in 2002. Robert Horst started research of the Bionic Leg years after his knee surgery. After developing the hard- and software of the product, Tibion sold the first Bionic Leg in 2009. By today the company has sold more than a hundred units. Tibion is now part of AlterG, Inc., a company who is revolutionizing modern rehabilitation through the use of the cutting edge Anti-Gravity Treadmill® and Bionic Leg. The Bionic Leg is currently available in over 100 hospitals, physical therapy facilities and skilled nursing facilities worldwide. The AlterG Anti-Gravity Treadmill® technology was originally developed for NASA and is the first FDA-cleared medical device that uses patented differential air pressure technology. AlterG products are used by major medical centers, leading physical therapy clinics, top professional and collegiate teams and athletes, and individual sports and fitness programs worldwide.
The awards committee cited the other two finalists as follows:
The Thymio II Educational Robot by Stéphane Magnenat, ETH Zürich and Fanny Riedo, EPFL, Switzerland
"An inspiring product motivating young boys and girls to enter science, technology, engineering and math disciplines."
Intelligent Grit-blasting Robots for The Surface Preparation Industry by Professor Dikai Liu, University of Technology, Australia
"A good example of bringing robotics and automation technologies to tackle dull, dirty, and dangerous tasks, and to improve infrastructure maintenance."
In 2005 the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (IEEE/RAS) and the International Federation of Robotics (IFR) agreed to jointly sponsor the Invention and Entrepreneurship Award. The purpose of this award is to highlight and honor the achievements of the inventors with value creating ideas and entrepreneurs who propel those ideas into world-class products. At the same time the joint disposition of the award underlines the determination of both organizations to promote stronger collaboration between robotics science and robotics industry. The annual presented award consists of a plaque and a $2,000 honorarium.
Judging is now open for the ICRA 2013 Photo Contest!
Let Contest Begin! Please help us choose a winner!
Read more: Judging is now open for the ICRA 2013 Photo Contest!
RAS Offering 2 Free Webinars
The IEEE Robotics & Automation Society is offering its members two free webinars to ehance communications skills.
The Power of Presentations: Make Yours Informative, Persuasive, & Memorable
Wednesday, 10 April 17:00 –18:00 (GMT -4:00)
•Many engineers experience a kind of stage fright when they make presentations in front of groups, whether small or large. Their hands shake, their palms sweat, and they have a tendency to rock back and forth. But they may think there is nothing they can do about these physical tics.
•The success of an oral presentation depends on both the clear verbal information conveyed by the presenter and on the clear visual information conveyed by graphs, charts, tables, and other visuals. Unfortunately poor visuals can cause confusion when the presenter ignores the conventions of displaying information.
•How do you present technical information to non-technical people? Many engineers are tempted to “dumb down” technical content for non-engineers, often creating over-simplified presentations that insult the audience.
The Power of Presentations is a webinar designed to help you address these issues.
Sign up now at https://ieeemeetings.webex.com
Improving Workplace Email Using the STOP Method
Thursday, 30 May 19:00 – 20:00 (GMT -4:00)
Email: it’s the first thing we check in the morning, probably before we even get to the office, and it rules our actions throughout the day. But despite the importance of email, we don’t spend much time considering how to make it more effective at accomplishing our goals. In fact, some of the email we receive is so confusing and poorly written, we may have a difficult time understanding exactly what the message is and what the writer wants. The STOP Method is designed to help you improve your email through four concrete strategies. This webinar will introduce you to the STOP method and give you opportunities to improve your email every day. Dr. Julia Williams will offer examples of poor email and identify the elements that contribute to its ineffectiveness.
The goal of this webinar is to provide you with easy-to-use tools that will make a difference in your email right away!
To sign up for thes free webinars sponsored by the IEEE Robotics & Automation Society in conjunction with the IEEE Professional Communication Society, visit www.ieee-ras.org and click on the calendar.
Sign up now at https://ieeemeetings.webex.com
About the Webinar presenter, Dr. Julia ?Williams has worked with engineers and technical professionals for over 20 years to help them improve their presentations. Her approach to presentations is always practical and informed by her work with engineers in their workplaces.
Enter to win an iPad mini - ICRA Photo Contest
Do you enjoy photography, have an artistic eye and are up for a challenge? If you are attending ICRA 2013 in Karlsruhe, Germany, RAS invites you to participate in a photography contest. Photos should capture the essence of ICRA, exhibit creativity and technical skill. You are invited to submit up to three original photos taken during the event from 6-10 May 2013. The winner will receive an iPad mini.
All photos submitted to this contest may be used by RAS in future promotions, the RAS Facebook page, the RAS website or other opportunities.
Deadline for Submission of Photos: 17 May 2013
Judging: Photos will be placed in an album on the RAS Facebook Page. The photo with the most "likes" by 31 May will be the winner. RAS members and the public will be encouraged to vote for their favorite photo.
Please use the following form to submit your entry:
https://adobeformscentral.com/?f=TIH0S4q8eLEIizBYBm2dag
For questions, or to submit your entry via email:
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
IEEE RAS Summer School Program - Call for Proposals Deadline
Deadline: 1 April 2013 for 2014 Proposals!
The IEEE RAS Summer School program is jointly run by the Member Activities Board (MAB) and the Technical Activities Board (TAB) of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (RAS). The program is intended to sponsor or co-sponsor up to three summer schools per year around the world. One of the three summer schools will be fully sponsored by RAS to a level of $40,000, and it will rotate annually through RAS' three geographical regions in a round robin fashion. The other two summer schools will be cosponsored with interested organizations in the other two geographical regions up to a level of $20,000 each.
The review of summer school proposals is based on assessments from two different viewpoints, the first one with respect to the general structure, including organizational matters and budget, and the second one with respect to the technical content:
- The Education Committee will check the general organizational structure of the summer school, including budget aspects and guide through the general application process.
- Suited Technical Committees (TCs) of the RAS have to endorse theproposal. Current TCs are listed at: www.ieee-ras.org/technical-committees
More detailed information can be found in the Education Column of the March 2012 issue of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Magazine (RAM) [1]; the column is open access and can be downloaded from: ieeexplore.ieee.org
Deadlines for the submission of proposals for the coming years are as follows:
Proposals for 2014
- Deadline: 1 April 2013
- Decision: ICRA 2013
- Full sponsorship ($40,000) for Area 1 (Americas)
Proposals for 2015
- Deadline: 1 April 2014
- Decision: ICRA 2014
- Full sponsorship ($40,000) for Area 2 (Europe, Africa, Middle East)
RAS Member Luncheons at ICRA 2013 - Extended Registration
ICRA 2013 is being held 6-10 May. During the conference, the following luncheons are being offered to members of the IEEE Robotics & Automation Society.
Women In Engineering (WIE) Luncheon will take place on Tuesday, 7 May, 12:50 to 14:00 at the Kongresszentrum Karlsruhe, Konzerthaus. The WIE luncheon provides an opportunity for all the female and male professionals who are interested in women engineering education to discuss the subjects of career path, career/family choices, and other topics. Advanced online registration is closed. To register onsite - please check in at the Luncheon Registration/Luncheon location.
GOLD (Graduates Of the Last Decade) Lunch is being held on Wednesday, 8 May, 12:50 to 14:00 at the Kongresszentrum Karlsruhe, Konzerthaus. This luncheon is open to recent graduates, so that they can network with peers and find out more about the the benefits of RAS. There is a $5 USD registration fee to attend. Advanced online registration is closed. To register onsite - please check in at the Luncheon Registration/Luncheon location.
Student Lunch with Leaders (LwL) will take place in parallel to the GOLD lunch on Wednesday, 8 May, 12:50 to 14:00 at the Kongresszentrum Karlsruhe, Schwarzwaldhalle. Lunch with Leaders (LwL) offers student members an opportunity to network with leaders and get advice and mentoring on their career and research. Registration for this event is closed. Please consider joining IEEE RAS at the GOLD luncheon.
IEEE RAS Mobile Microrobotics Challenge at ICRA 2013
We would like to announce that as of this Fall, the US NIST has passed on organizational duties for the annual Microrobotics Challenge to the IEEE RAS Technical Committee on Micro-Nano Robotics and Automation.
For ICRA 2013, a committee composed of Prof. Dan Popa, Prof. Dave Cappelleri, and Dr. Jason Gorman will organize the Mobile Microrobotics Challenge as a Robot Challenge event.
The MMC event is an excellent motivator for students to pursue research in micro-nano robotics and we encourage submissions to this event by December 15, 2012.
The rules for next year's event are posted online at http://www.uta.edu/ee/ngs/mmc/rules.pdf Please circulate the CFP link http://www.uta.edu/ee/ngs/mmc/ to collaborators, students and colleagues who may be interested in participating.
Thank you and we hope to see you at the MMC competition in Karlsruhe!
RAS Panel of Conference Organizers (POCO)
Conference timelines, Concentration Banking Accounts, Budgets, Whether to hire a meeting planner, Conference Closings, Hotel Contracts, Insurance, Tax Issues— organizing a conference can be a daunting task, especially a large conference like ICRA or IROS involving a thousand people or more. Anyone who is involved in organizing an IEEE Conference is urged to attend and get answers to your questions about the organization, requirements, logistics and finances of conferences, both large and small.
The RAS Panel of Conference Organizers (RAS POCO) will take place on Monday, 6 May from 9:00-14:00 during ICRA 2013, in room SR3-Konzerthaus in Karlsruhe, Germany. Lunch will be provided by RAS.
Tentative AGENDA
09:00-09:15 - Opening Remarks for the Mini POCO - David Orin
09:15-09:45 - Conferences in RAS - Nikos Papanikolopoulos
09:45-10:15 - Conference Initiation and MOUs - Kathy Colabaugh
10:15-10:45 - Conference Timeline & Checklist - Nikos Papanikolopoulos
10:45-11:15 - Conference Basics - Nikos Papanikolopoulos
11:15-12:00 - Conference Finance and Closing - Ron Lumia
12:00-12:30 - Working LUNCH
12:30-14:00 - How IEEE MCE can assist Organizers - Alicia Zupeck
14:00 - Q&A
Please register for this FREE workshop on-line
Or register by email:
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
RAS AdCom Election Results
Six RAS members have been elected by the membership to serve a three-year term beginning January 1, 2013. We wish the newly elected members of the Administrative Committee success and thank all candidates afor their willingness to serve and for permitting their names to be included on the ballot.
AdCom Members Elected at Large:
William (Bill) Hamel
Max Qing Hu Meng
AdCom Members from RAS Geographic Area 1 (the Americas):
Ning Xi
AdCom Member from RAS Geographical Area 2 (Europe, Africa, Middle East--IEEE Region 8):
Martin Buss
Jianwei Zhang
- AdCom Member from RAS Geogrpahical Area 3 (Asia, Australia, Pacific Rim):
Kazuhito Yokoi
Left: William (Bill) Hamel Right: Ning Xi
Webinar Slides and Recording Now Available
Did you get a chance to join the RAS Webinar - The Power of Presentations: Make Yours Informative, Persuasive, & Memorable?
Don't worry if you did not, the slides and a recording of the webinar are now posted here on the RAS website, under the Education tab.
If you would like to address the issues mentioned below, check it out.
•Many engineers experience a kind of stage fright when they make presentations in front of groups, whether small or large. Their hands shake, their palms sweat, and they have a tendency to rock back and forth. But they may think there is nothing they can do about these physical tics.
•The success of an oral presentation depends on both the clear verbal information conveyed by the presenter and on the clear visual information conveyed by graphs, charts, tables, and other visuals. Unfortunately poor visuals can cause confusion when the presenter ignores the conventions of displaying information.
•How do you present technical information to non-technical people? Many engineers are tempted to “dumb down” technical content for non-engineers, often creating over-simplified presentations that insult the audience.
Extended Deadline: IEEE RAS Summer School Proposals for 2013 from the Americas
Call for Proposals: IEEE RAS Summer School Program
Proposals for 2013 from Americas only!!! Extended Deadline: 30. November 2012
This Call for Proposals is specifically targeted at Summer Schools taking place in 2013 in the Americas. Proposals for years other than 2013 or for regions other than the Americas have to be submitted according to the regular deadlines listed below.
The deadline for proposals for 2013 from the Americas for support from the IEEE RAS Summer School program is extended to 30 November 2012. Events that are interested in receiving up to $20,000 for e.g. participant support are encouraged to apply.
There is no extension of the deadlines for Asia and Europe for 2013 proposals. The deadline for all three regions, i.e., Americas, Asia, and Europe, is 1 April from 2013 on. So, the deadline for proposals for 2014 is still 1 April 2013.
The IEEE RAS Summer School program is jointly run by the Member Activities Board (MAB) and the Technical Activities Board (TAB) of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (RAS). The program is intended to sponsor or co-sponsor up to three summer schools per year around the world. One of the three summer schools will be fully sponsored by RAS to a level of $40,000, and it will rotate annually through RAS' three geographical regions in a round robin fashion. The other two summer schools will be cosponsored with interested organizations in the other two geographical regions up to a level of $20,000 each.
The review of summer school proposals is based on assessments from two different viewpoints, the first one with respect to the general structure, including organizational matters and budget, and the second one with respect to the technical content:
1) The Education Committee will check the general organizational structure of the summer school, including budget aspects and guide through the general application process.
2) Suited Technical Committees (TCs) of the RAS have to endorse the proposal. Current TCs are listed at http://www.ieee-ras.org/technical/committees.html.
More detailed information can be found in the Education Column of the March 2012 issue of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Magazine (RAM) [1]; the column is open access and can be downloaded from http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=6174338.
The deadlines for the submission of proposals for the coming years are as follows:
* Proposals for 2013 for Americas only!!!
- Deadline: 30. November 2012
- Decision: December 2012
* Proposals for 2014
- Deadline: 01. April 2013
- Decision: ICRAí13
* Proposals for 2015
- Deadline: 01. April 2014
- Decision: ICRAí14
The official submission of a proposal must be via email to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
