Research overview

My research mainly concerns human-system biomechanical interaction. This line of research focuses on the integration of methods and models capable of analyzing and simulating human interaction with a system, in order to use these simulations a priori for training, ergonomics or rehabilitation, but also to analyze real-life situations or evaluate already existing systems.

In the field of physical work assistance, understanding and formalizing the tasks to be assisted and human capabilities are essential to the design of devices capable of helping humans perform the task, particularly wearable devices such as exoskeletons. From the specification of systems to the evaluation of their effectiveness, their design benefits greatly from this knowledge. With this in mind, modeling and simulation of the human-exoskeleton system is a powerful and effective way of testing the functionality of the exoskeleton and its potential impact on the human it is intended to assist. 

Similarly, rehabilitation and assistance devices can benefit from such a framework to be designed and controlled according to the specificities of the user, i.e. a person with a disability or motor weakness (elderly, neuromuscular diseases...). This remark clearly raises the question of the fidelity and accuracy of the biomechanical model representing the user motor capabilities. 

Finally, biomechanical interaction is a fundamental element of sports performance, requiring the development of integrated, detailed interaction models capable of guiding the athlete and his or her coaching team towards a given performance using a given piece of equipment.