BIONICS

CoE for Bionics (CoE-BIONICS) – Bologna, INAIL Centro Protesi

The CoE-BIONICS aims to become an international hub of knowledge, research, and clinical experimentation of bionic assistive devices, with a special focus on advanced prosthetic limbs. It will be strategically established within INAIL Centro Protesi in Budrio (Bologna), perhaps the major prosthetic Center in Europe, and constructed within the time frame of Fit4MedRob in synergy with resources made available by INAIL. CoE-BIONICS will focus on translational research, by sharing objectives, experiences, spaces, equipment and engaging with patients. It will be the home for addressing every aspect of human-technology integration: functional stump surgery, bionic interfaces, robotic technologies, control strategies, sensory feedback, embodiment, rehabilitation processes and outcome measures. These will be applied in different contexts, from laboratory to home. Through clinical studies, CoE-BIONICS will consistently collect and process data to create a solid knowledge base, which, appropriately disseminated in the scientific and clinical communities, will drive the design of new assistive technologies. Under these assumptions, CoE-BIONICS will become a reference for innovative medical device manufacturers, and for conducting clinical studies suitable for certification according to legislation (CoE-URAT). The inherent goal of is to further strengthen the leadership of Italian research on this topic by gathering a critical mass of researchers from different partner Institutions for forefront research activities, funded yearly by INAIL itself. CoE-BIONICS will be equipped with state-of-the-art prostheses, instruments and devices already available at Centro Protesi or acquired by INAIL.