Organizers

• Arami, Arash
• Tucker, Maegan
• Ijspeert, Auke

Abstract

The "Bridging Human Locomotion Neuromechanics and Assistive Robotics" workshop aims to bridge neuroscience, biomechanics, and robotics, focusing on the neural control and biomechanics of gait. The main scientific goals of this interdisciplinary event are to explore how insights into human movement neuroscience, motor control and optimal control theories can enhance assistive robotic systems such as exoskeletons and exosuits. It will help shed light on approaches that manifest the generalizable and flexible solutions versus personalized and user-specific solutions in this domain. Topics include neural mechanisms of gait initiation, adaptation, and stability, as well as biomechanical principles for efficient movement. The workshop will highlight advances in pathologic gait modeling, predictive musculoskeletal simulations, and data-driven approaches, including deep learning, and how these models can robot-assisted gait. It will also cover state-of-the-art bio-inspired control strategies to enhance human locomotion, particularly in rehabilitation. This workshop offers an invaluable opportunity for those interested in the convergence of neuroscience, biomechanics, and robotics to enhance human mobility and autonomy. Participants will benefit from expert presentations, interactive discussions, and hands-on demonstrations, fostering collaborations to drive future innovations in human gait rehabilitation and human-robot locomotion systems.

Organizers

• Dolez, Patricia
• Elias, Anastasia
• Tolley, Michael T.
• Sameoto, Dan
• Sang, Lingzi
• Caso, Taymy
• Oliver, Marilene
• Mushahwar, Vivian K.

Abstract

This workshop advances the field of biorobotics by foregrounding transdisciplinary co-design approaches that integrate smart textiles, wearable robotics, arts and design, and social justice perspectives. As bio-integrated robotic systems increasingly move from laboratories onto living bodies, there is a pressing need to rethink how these technologies are conceived, not only as technical systems, but as embodied, social, and cultural artifacts. Grounded in the multi-year initiative "Co-designing a Smartwear Revolution", the workshop highlights the development of intelligent garments that embed sensing, actuation, and adaptive mechanical properties directly at the fibre and yarn level, enabling seamless interaction with human biomechanics and intent. Through research presentations, material demonstrations, and creative practices, the workshop will showcase emerging technologies, explore artistic and design-led methods for understanding embodiment, and engage critically with issues of accessibility, equity, and ethics. By bringing together engineers, designers, artists, clinicians, social scientists, and trainees, the workshop aims to foster new collaborations and inspire responsible, inclusive approaches to wearable and assistive biorobotics.

Additional Info

Organizers

• Masiero, Federico
• Gherardini, Marta
• Mastinu, Enzo
• Controzzi, Marco
• Masia, Lorenzo
• Cipriani, Christian

Abstract

Wearable robots, like exoskeletons and prostheses, are rapidly transitioning from research prototypes to functional devices impacting healthcare, industry, and daily life. On one side, advances in surgical techniques and implantable technologies have enabled highly integrated bionic limbs; on the other, AI-driven and neuromuscular-informed shared control strategies are opening new possibilities for adaptable, task-agnostic wearable robots. Despite significant progress in mechatronic hardware, the human-machine interface remains a critical bottleneck for achieving seamless, intuitive, safe device operation. How can engineers fine-tune system autonomy to preserve the user's sense of motor agency? What breakthroughs are redefining human interaction with wearable robots? What design strategies will shape the next generation devices? How should clinical translational potential and technological accessibility be integrated into the creative design process? This half-day workshop will convene leading experts from academia, industry, and clinical practice to explore these questions, discussing advances in bionic limb surgeries, multimodal sensing, biosignal decoding, shared control architectures, and adaptive AI-based controllers that enhance functionality while safeguarding user agency and intuitive interaction. Through invited talks, interactive panels, and practical discussions, the workshop will provide an inclusive platform for early-career and expert researchers, clinicians, and engineers to exchange ideas and shape the future of wearable robotics.

Organizers

• Ghonasgi, Keya
• West Jr., A. Michael
• Huber, Meghan
• Higgins, Taylor

Abstract

Rehabilitation robotics presents unique human–robot interaction challenges, where success depends not on immediate task performance but on supporting long-term motor learning and functional recovery. This workshop reframes rehabilitation robotics through a learning-centric lens, uniting researchers who study motor learning mechanisms, model adaptation processes, and design robot-assisted interventions. Organized around four themes: Measuring, Modeling, Modulating, and Rehabilitation Learning. The workshop fosters interdisciplinary dialogue bridging fundamental motor learning and clinical research. Through invited talks, discussions, and student engagement activities, participants will identify open challenges, develop shared vocabulary, and advance robot designs that more effectively promote durable human skill acquisition.

Organizers

• Libby, Jacqueline
• Fitzsimons, Kathleen

Abstract

Assistive and rehabilitation robots can enhance the quality of life for the elderly, people with disabilities, and caregivers. To realize clinical translation, personalization to patient-specific ergonomics and functional needs is paramount. This workshop will explore how physically interactive robotic devices can adapt to different user demographics, diseases, motor tasks, and patient functional progress via advances in both hardware and software. The workshop will bring together expert panelists to discuss recent advances that explore customization via fabrication of human-robot interfaces, as well as the software architectures that control those interfaces. We aim to explore the interplay between software and hardware adaptation in assistive and rehabilitation robotics, allowing panelists and participants to exchange perspectives on the benefits of software- and hardware-based personalization. Personalization of software includes adaptive controllers that are modulated in real time based on user performance. Biofeedback can inform high-level commands, allowing for intuitive and responsive control. Advances in motion tracking and modeling of human kinematics and dynamics support personalization, with applications in gait analysis, gait monitoring and stability estimation. Personalization of hardware includes variable stiffness orthoses for powered ankle-foot-orthoses and functional electrical stimulation exoskeleton systems. Novel haptic actuators provide stimuli that promote neuroplasticity.

Organizers

• Bouwmeester, Celine
• Jansen-Kosterink, Stephanie
• Prinsen, Erik
• Thorsteinsson, Freygardur
• Ausin, Txetxu

Abstract

In this workshop, we will dive into the ethical, legal, and social implications (ELSI) of wearable robotics. In current research practices, we have observed that the focus is often on one of these perspectives (i.e., ethical, legal and social), while the others are often neglected at the same time. We want to demonstrate that all perspectives are needed for sustainable implementation of wearable robots in healthcare. The workshop will be staged as a battle among these three perspectives where participants will be allocated to one of the perspectives which they will need to represent during the workshop. The participants will be trained in the current state and challenges of healthcare and regulatory systems to properly fight for their perspective. Through practical examples, we will highlight that the challenges of today are not the challenges of tomorrow. Throughout the workshop, intermezzo's with experts in the field of ethical, legal and social implications will guide the audience. The experts will emphasize the importance of the perspectives to develop and perform research with wearable robotics. In an interactive approach, the participants will prepare a final scene in which they discuss the core aspects of their perspective. They will build a matrix with both the benefits and challenges of each perspective in the future. The participants will end the workshop with setting up a joint directive for future ELSI implications in the field of wearable robotics. By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to: Evaluate the current and future directions of wearable robotics in healthcare; Describe the three ELSI perspectives; Translate each ELSI perspective into real-world examples; Project the ELSI principles in their future research activities.

Organizers

• Paez Granados, Diego
• Perez Serrano, Monica
• Bhattacharjee, Tapomayukh
• Watanabe, Tetsuyou
• Awai Easthope, Chris
• Cordella, Francesca

Abstract

Healthcare and assistive robotics is entering a data-rich phase with wearable biosignals (EMG, ECG/PPG, IMU, EDA), context sensing, and continuous patient-reported outcomes can now support adaptive controllers, personalized rehabilitation, socially assistive robots, and digital biomarkers. Yet the biorobotics community is still hindering itself by sensor pipelines that are fragmented, datasets that are difficult to reuse across labs, and models rarely transfer cleanly across devices, sites, or populations. While robotics benefitted from early standard interfaces and software ecosystems created by ROS, health data for robotics remains vendor-specific, script-bound, and inconsistently documented, herewith limiting reproducibility, slowing clinical translation, and constraining the next wave of foundation-model and closed-loop learning approaches. This half-day BioRob 2026 workshop targets that bottleneck. We will review the state of the art in wearable-driven human state estimation, biosignal processing for intention/interaction, and human-in-the-loop robot adaptation, then focus on what is missing: interoperable data models, shared software interfaces, and community practices that make results portable and clinically valid. The workshop is structured around (i) 9 invited talks to set technical and translational baselines, (ii) spotlight presentations and live robot/wearables demos to expose practical integration challenges, and (iii) interactive panels to converge on priorities and actionable standards. With additional poster/presentation competition to motivate young scientist to join the conversation and actively participate in the workshop.

Organizers

• Quadrelli, Debora
• Di Bello, Pietro

Abstract

Despite significant advances in prosthetic and assistive technologies, a gap remains between laboratory performance and real-world usability. Limitations in human–machine interfaces, such as signal reliability, unintuitive feedback, discomfort, and poor long-term usability, continue to hinder clinical translation and long-term adoption. This workshop addresses this gap by focusing on non-invasive, bidirectional interfaces, exploring how to balance performance, robustness, and user experience. The session will bring together experts from engineering, clinical rehabilitation, and industry to discuss trade-offs between invasiveness, effectiveness, and long-term reliability. Moving beyond laboratory metrics, discussions will explore what constitutes a good enough interface for daily life and identify practical pathways for translating non-invasive interfaces into deployable clinical and commercial solutions.