Research Interest

Rehabilitation Robotics
Assistive Technology
Exoskeletons and Prosthetics
Wearable Robotics
Computer Vision and Deep Learning
Neural Engineering

Biography

Brokoslaw Laschowski is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute working in the Intelligent Assistive Technology and Systems Laboratory (IATSL) and the Artificial Intelligence and Robotics in Rehabilitation (AIRR) Lab under the supervision of Dr. Alex Mihailidis. He also holds an affiliation with the Temerty Centre for Artificial Intelligence Research and Education in Medicine (T-CAIREM) and the Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy at the University of Toronto. He specializes in using mathematical, computational, and machine learning methods to optimize the design and control of humans interacting with wearable robotic systems and technologies. Applications of his research include neural-machine interfaces, rehabilitation robotics, and wearable assistive technologies (i.e., exoskeletons and powered prostheses) for older adults and/or persons with physical disabilities.

Brokoslaw received his PhD from the Department of Systems Design Engineering, with a specialization in biomedical engineering, at the University of Waterloo and the Waterloo Artificial Intelligence Institute. His doctoral research focused on 1) mathematical modelling and computer simulation of human-exoskeleton systems with energy-efficient actuators, and 2) computer vision and deep learning for autonomous exoskeleton control during legged locomotion. He received his masters from the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering at the University of Waterloo and a second master's degree from the School of Kinesiology, with a specialization in human biomechanics, from the University of Western Ontario.

Brokoslaw has published in many leading scientific journals and conferences, including the IEEE Transactions on Medical Robotics and Bionics, Frontiers in Robotics and AI, and the IEEE International Conference on Biomedical Robotics and Biomechatronics. He previously served on the executive committee of the Canadian Society for Biomechanics and worked at the Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital and as a biomechanics professor at Humber College. To date, he has earned over $234,000 in scholarships and awards (e.g., from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada) and co-authored grant proposals that received over $197,000 in research and infrastructure funding (e.g., from the Canada Foundation for Innovation). He has presented at many national and international conferences and was recently a Best Paper Award finalist at the 2019 IEEE International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics. His award-winning research has been featured on media networks like BBC News, CBC, and Maclean’s Magazine, in addition to the recent GTC keynote address by the founder and CEO of NVIDIA.

Selected Publications

Laschowski B, McNally W, Wong A, and McPhee J. (2021). Environment Classification for Robotic Leg Prostheses and Exoskeletons using Deep Convolutional Neural Networks. bioRxiv. DOI: 10.1101/2021.06.24.449600.

Nasr A, Laschowski B, and McPhee J. (2021). Myoelectric Control of Robotic Leg Prostheses and Exoskeletons: A Review. ASME International Design Engineering Technical Conferences and Computers and Information in Engineering Conference (IDETC-CIE). Accepted.

Laschowski B, McNally W, Wong A, and McPhee J. (2021). Computer Vision and Deep Learning for Environment-Adaptive Control of Robotic Lower-Limb Exoskeletons. Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBC). Accepted.

Laschowski B, Razavian RS, and McPhee J. (2021). Simulation of Stand-to-Sit Biomechanics for Robotic Exoskeletons and Prostheses with Energy Regeneration. IEEE Transactions on Medical Robotics and Bionics, 3(2), pp. 455-462. DOI: 10.1109/TMRB.2021.3058323.

Laschowski B, McNally W, Wong A, and McPhee J. (2020). ExoNet Database: Wearable Camera Images of Human Locomotion Environments. Frontiers in Robotics and AI . 7, 562061. DOI: 10.3389/frobt.2020.562061.

Laschowski B, McNally W, Wong A, and McPhee J. (2020). Comparative Analysis of Environment Recognition Systems for Control of Lower-Limb Exoskeletons and Prostheses. IEEE International Conference on Biomedical Robotics and Biomechatronics (BioRob). DOI: 10.1109/BioRob49111.2020.9224364.

Laschowski B, McNally W, Wong A, and McPhee J. (2019). Preliminary Design of an Environment Recognition System for Controlling Robotic Lower-Limb Prostheses and Exoskeletons. IEEE International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics (ICORR), pp. 868-873. DOI: 10.1109/ICORR.2019.8779540.