Developing Low-cost Wearables to Support Home-based Hand Rehabilitation in Rural and Isolated Communities [Self-Funded Students Only]

Project Highlights:

• Identify relevant literature to inform the design of technology for home-based rehabilitation as well as understanding the complexities of rurality and rural computing 
• Explore qualitative and quantitative methods to identify requirements for low-cost wearables suitable to home use in rural areas.
• Build and test interactive prototypes to evaluate their usability, feasibility and acceptability.

Background:

People who survive stroke or head injury due to an accident or fall are often left with long-term health complications including weakness and upper limb function impairment, resulting in difficulty performing everyday tasks. Rehabilitation can help regain upper limb function and return to independent living. However, it may not be accessible to people living in isolated or rural areas, who may not be able to easily access rehabilitation services. Moreover, outside of the hospital, adherence to rehabilitation is low as patients often lose interest due to repetitive nature of the exercises or may do them incorrectly due to fear of pain.

Technology has the potential to support rehabilitation. While several projects have been developed, these technological solutions often fail to integrate the exercises in everyday routines, and are large and expensive. Therefore, there is a pressing need for rehabilitation tools that support physiotherapy exercises at home especially for rural communities. The proliferation of cheap sensors and 3D printers offers the potential to develop accessible rehabilitation tools at a low cost.

Aims:

This PhD project will explore how low-cost wearables could support upper-limb rehabilitation at home.

Methods:

The project will involve a mixed-methods approach, including controlled experiments to evaluate the accuracy of the device, and qualitative research and design methods to engage with rural participants in order to understand their needs, gather requirements and evaluate the prototypes.

Deliverables:

The main output will be a validated prototype for supporting hand rehabilitation at home. The studentship will also contribute to the fundamental understanding of how to design rehabilitation devices that can be safely used at home, which can be applied to other contexts.

Additional information:

The student will be able to define specific condition (e.g. stroke, acquired brain injury, arthritis) and the communities to focus on (e.g. rural areas in Wales, specific country from the Global South) based on their interest. They will work alongside, and will be able to collaborate with, members of Human-Centred Computing (HCC) group, School of Engineering and School of Healthcare Sciences at Cardiff University.

Keywords:

Human-Computer Interaction, Rehabilitation, Wearables, Rural Computing

Please contact Dr Katarzyna Stawarz ([Email Address Removed]) for further information.

How to apply:

Please contact the supervisors of the project prior to submitting your application to discuss and develop an individual research proposal that builds on the information provided in this advert. Once you have developed the proposal with support from the supervisors, please submit your application following the instructions provided below

This project is accepting applications all year round, for self-funded candidates via https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/research/programmes/programme/computer-science-and-informatics 

In order to be considered candidates must submit the following information: 

• Supporting statement 
• CV 
• In the ‘Research Proposal’ section of the application enter the name of the project you are applying to and upload your Individual research proposal, as mentioned above in BOLD
• Qualification certificates and Transcripts
• Proof of Funding. For example, a letter of intent from your sponsor or confirmation of self-funded status (In the funding field of your application, insert Self-Funded)
• References x 2 
• Proof of English language (if applicable)

Interview - If the application meets the entrance requirements, you will be invited to an interview.  

If you have any questions or need more information, please contact [Email Address Removed]