NSF CAREER Award Fuels URI Research to Advance Human-Centered Assistive Robotics
The National Science Foundation has awarded University of Rhode Island (URI) assistant professor Reza Abiri a prestigious NSF CAREER Award to develop fully noninvasive, intelligent assistive robotics technologies that help individuals with severe motor impairments interact naturally with their environment.
With $546,848 in support over five years, Abiri’s project, titled “Versatile and high-performance shared autonomy paradigms for assistive and rehabilitation robots,” aims to revolutionize how individuals with paralysis and physical disabilities control assistive robotic systems. The work leverages shared autonomy and multimodal AI to amplify low-dimensional biosignals, such as head movement or eye motion, into precise robotic actions without requiring invasive implants.
Key innovations include:
Developing noninvasive, AI-driven brain-machine interfaces.
Designing head-mounted sensor systems and robotic arm interfaces for real-time object manipulation.
Enabling high-dimensional robotic control using low-effort human inputs.
The CAREER Award also supports education and outreach:
Mentorship opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students.
Creation of a new university-level course and student hackathons.
K–12 outreach programs aimed at expanding access and diversity in robotics and AI fields.
The award represents a significant milestone for both Abiri and the URI College of Engineering, which has now received six NSF CAREER Awards in the past five years. Abiri’s research lab in Translational Neurorobotics will collaborate with regional medical centers and industry partners to translate lab discoveries into real-world assistive technologies.