Neurorehabilitation and Motor Control Research Group

Group Leader: Lilla ZÓLYOMINÉ BOTZHEIM

Webpage: rehab.wigner.mta.hu

Publications of the group: link to the database of the Hungarian Scientific Bibliography

The Neurorehabilitation and Motor Control research group focuses on studying human movement patterns, answering questions about movement control and applying the results to the movement rehabilitation of people with motor impairments. Motion control is an interdisciplinary field based on the collaboration of physicists, engineers, mathematicians, human kinesiologists and physicians. Applications of motion control research include medical rehabilitation, sports science and rehabilitation robotics.

Our research team is investigating the movement of able-bodied participants to answer control questions using different mathematical models and computer algorithms. Regulatory issues include, for example, the optimisation of the execution of a movement task, the study of the interactions between neuro-musculoskeletal systems or the monitoring of different parameters in the presence of altered locomotion. Our group conducts its research in collaboration with the Pázmány Péter Catholic University, the University of Pécs and the National Institute of Medical Rehabilitation. Our results are mainly applied in the rehabilitation training of people with spinal cord injury. During the training sessions, we monitor the effectiveness of the therapeutic protocols and the progress of the patients as a result of the training sessions. The specificity of the functional electrical stimulation (FES) guided cycling used by our research group is that paralysed muscles are induced to exert artificially induced active muscle forces by means of electrical stimulation. This type of movement is also suitable for competitive training. We have been preparing for Cybathlon competitions for years with our spinal cord injured pilot, in collaboration with multiple institutions.