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Building Reliable Advances and Innovation in Neurotechnology (BRAIN) Center

The opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed are those of the Center author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

Center Overview

The Building Reliable Advances and Innovation in Neurotechnology (BRAIN) Center develops and tests the efficacy, safety, and long-term reliability of patient-centered neurotechnology. The BRAIN Center allows research that would not be possible within the traditional silos of academic, industry, regulatory, and clinical communities.

The BRAIN Center's mission is to develop safe, effective, and affordable personalized neurotechnologies for diagnostics, restoration, enhancement, and rehabilitation of sensory, motor, affective, and cognitive functions. This is pursued by supporting innovative interdisciplinary research across the multiple dimensions of brain function and behavior, with the ultimate goal of improving quality of life.

The BRAIN Center's discoveries:

Revolutionize the way scientists and engineers approach the design of complex human-machine systems using data.
Interpret brain function from the molecular to the network levels.
Harness neuroplasticity and emergent properties at multiple time scales to enhance the engagement and efficacy of human-machine interfaces.
Enable innovative devices that support accessible health care and empower individuals to control their own health, wellness, and fitness.
Redefine the human-technology frontier.

Universities

University of Houston
Arizona State University

View Center Website

Center Personnel

Jose Contreras-Vidal
Center Director and Site Director for University of Houston
+1 713 743 4429
JLContreras-vidal@uh.edu

Marco Santello
Site Director for Arizona State University
+1 480 965 7678
Marco.Santello@asu.edu

K. Michelle Patrick-Krueger
Industry Liaison & Program Manager
+1 713 743 7425
KMPatric@cougarnet.uh.edu

Luca Pollonini
Co-Site Director, University of Houston
+1 713 743 4159
LPollonini@uh.edu

David Mayerich
Co-Site Director, University of Houston
+1 713 743 6105
Mayerich@uh.edu

Research Focus

The BRAIN Center research topics focus on the needs of the members and the capabilities of the participating universities. Topics include:

Invasive neurotechnology.
Medical devices law, regulation, and ethics.
Mobility assessment and clinical intervention.
Neurological clinical research.
Neurorehabilitation technology.
Noninvasive neurotechnology.

BRAIN Center research areas include:

Big Data.
Clinical trials.
Device development.
Device interoperability.
Neural activity measurement.
Neuromodulation.
Neurorehabilitation and assistive devices.
Regulatory science.

Awards

2137255

IUCRC Phase II: Building Reliable Advances and Innovations in Neurotechnology (BRAIN)

Disability is becoming a leading cause of healthcare concern because of the increase in survivable trauma and an aging population. Millions of adults live with neurological disorders, brain injury, mental illness, limb loss or paralysis. There is a need for accessible technologies that can more effectively address the care and rehabilitation needs of these patients. However, innovation in neurotechnology faces several challenges: The pace of innovation exceeds the rate of evaluation for acceptable performance; standards for the validation of safety, efficacy, and reliability of neurotechnology are lagging; current technologies are costly, limiting their deployment for treatment of disabilities; and the need to train new generations of physicians and engineers in emerging technologies steadily increases. The Industry-University Cooperative Research Center for Building Reliable Advances and Innovations in Neurotechnology (IUCRC BRAIN) will address the above challenges. The Center’s vision is built on a convergent research approach to the design and validation of reliable, ethical, patient-centered neurotechnologies and their use in understanding neural systems. BRAIN leverages wide-ranging expertise from neural, cognitive and rehabilitation engineering to neurorobotics, neuromodulation, and ethical artificial intelligence to enhance the rate of development and empirical validation of new neurotechnologies through partnerships with industry and other strategic partners while developing a highly skilled workforce; evaluating the impact of these technologies on quality of life; and integrating knowledge across disciplines —such as the humanities with neurotechnologies — to understand collective intelligence, and augment physical and cognitive capabilities. The Center’s mission is multifold: to accelerate the progress of science and advance the national health by transferring neurotechnology to end users and to promote access for underrepresented minorities in science, technology, engineering, and math by broadening new participation and retaining current participants. BRAIN will address problems in the neurological space that disproportionately affect underrepresented groups. BRAIN will become a neurotechnology hub by creating a pipeline from discoveries to solutions, while helping students, scientists, and engineers solve one of the greatest unmet medical and health care needs of our time. The University of Houston Site – a Hispanic-Serving Institution and the Lead Site for the Center – will focus on multi-scale, multi-modal, and trans-disciplinary approaches to advance our understanding of neural function and translate discoveries to create neurotechnology for diagnostics, neurorehabilitation, and improving the human condition. The Center will maintain a project repository (https://nsfbrain.org/) comprised of products and services for 10 years after the completion of this project. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. Read More >

2137272

IUCRC Phase II ASU: Building Reliable Advances and Innovations in Neurotechnology (BRAIN)

Disability is becoming a leading cause of healthcare concern because of the increase in survivable trauma and an aging population. Millions of adults live with neurological disorders, brain injury, mental illness, limb loss or paralysis. There is a need for accessible technologies that can more effectively address the care and rehabilitation needs of these patients. However, innovation in neurotechnology faces several challenges: The pace of innovation exceeds the rate of evaluation for acceptable performance; standards for the validation of safety, efficacy, and reliability of neurotechnology are lagging; current technologies are costly, limiting their deployment for treatment of disabilities; and the need to train new generations of physicians and engineers in emerging technologies steadily increases. The Industry-University Cooperative Research Center for Building Reliable Advances and Innovations in Neurotechnology (IUCRC BRAIN) will address the above challenges. The Center’s vision is built on a convergent research approach to the design and validation of reliable, ethical, patient-centered neurotechnologies and their use in understanding neural systems. BRAIN leverages wide-ranging expertise from neural, cognitive and rehabilitation engineering to neurorobotics, neuromodulation, and ethical artificial intelligence to enhance the rate of development and empirical validation of new neurotechnologies through partnerships with industry and other strategic partners while developing a highly skilled workforce; evaluating the impact of these technologies on quality of life; and integrating knowledge across disciplines —such as the humanities with neurotechnologies — to understand collective intelligence, and augment physical and cognitive capabilities. The Center’s mission is multifold: to accelerate the progress of science and advance the national health by transferring neurotechnology to end users and to promote access for underrepresented minorities in science, technology, engineering, and math by broadening new participation and retaining current participants. BRAIN will address problems in the neurological space that disproportionately affect underrepresented groups. BRAIN will become a neurotechnology hub by creating a pipeline from discoveries to solutions, while helping students, scientists, and engineers solve one of the greatest unmet medical and health care needs of our time. The Arizona State University Site – a public institution recognized as a national leader in innovation – will focus on multi-scale, multi-modal, and trans-disciplinary approaches to advance our understanding of human neural function and translate discoveries to create neurotechnology for diagnostics and neurorehabilitation. The Center will maintain a project repository (https://nsfbrain.org/) comprised of products and services for 10 years after the completion of this project. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. Read More >

Member Organizations

IUCRC affiliated member organizations are displayed as submitted by the Center. Non-federal organizations are not selected, approved, or otherwise endorsed by the National Science Foundation.

Barrow Neurological Institute
Brain Products
BrainCare USA Corp
FDA
HOPCo
Indus Industries
Movement Interactive
MyACTome
Neuro Targeting
Precision Neuroscience
Seniors Rising
TIRR Memorial Hermann
Upstream Vision
Weinberg Medical Physics
ZelosDx