Caption: From left- Rob Rutenbar, senior vice chancellor for research; Anantha Shekhar, senior vice chancellor for the health sciences and John and Gertrude Petersen Dean of the School of Medicine; Rory Cooper, Distinguished Professor of Rehabilitation Engineering and HERL director; Joan Gabel, Chancellor; and Jorge Candiotti, associate professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation, School of Medicine, all of the University of Pittsburgh.
By Kat Procyk
Photography by Rayni Shiring/University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh announced at a Nov. 4 press conference a groundbreaking effort that could redefine mobility for wheelchair users.
Researchers at the Human Engineering Research Laboratories (HERL), a collaboration between the University of Pittsburgh and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, have been awarded up to $41.5 million from the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H). The funding will support the development of the Robotic Assisted Mobility and Manipulation Platform (RAMMP)—a next-generation system designed to dramatically enhance independence, safety and quality of life for individuals with disabilities, including veterans.
Led by Rory Cooper, Distinguished Professor of Rehabilitation Engineering and HERL director, and Jorge Candiotti, associate professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation, School of Medicine, both of Pitt, the RAMMP initiative aims to reimagine the traditional wheelchair and reduce reliance on caretakers. The project will integrate advanced robotics, artificial intelligence, a novel open-source assistive technology operating system and digital twin technology to create a smarter, safer and more functional mobility solution.
Most people open their refrigerator to grab a drink or some milk without a second thought, Cooper noted.
“That is a task that most people would like to be able to perform efficiently, rapidly on their own,” he said. But for some wheelchair users, “even now with the best current technology, it can take 10 to 15 minutes—one sip. We want to get that done when it can take seconds.”
Pitt Chancellor Joan Gabel said the RAMMP initiative furthers HERL’s and the University’s distinction as a go-to place for action and impact.
“When Pittsburgh or the world needs something, the University and its faculty, staff and students have risen to provide it, whether it be a polio vaccine in the 1950s or the type of incredible innovation found here at HERL that’s transforming assistive technologies to enable human achievement,” Gabel said.
HERL, founded by Cooper in the 1990s during Pittsburgh’s transition from a steel-based economy to a high-tech hub, now serves as a global leader in assistive technology innovation.
Anantha Shekhar, senior vice chancellor for the health sciences and John and Gertrude Petersen Dean of the School of Medicine at Pitt, praised the project, saying, “HERL has saved and changed the lives of so many thousands of disabled people and, over the past several years, Pitt and HERL have started building this concept of using technology to transform health care and using artificial intelligence and computational capabilities and robotics” to improve the quality of life for wheelchair users.
Caption: Rory Cooper and Anantha Shekhar
The RAMMP system will feature real-time 360-degree environmental awareness, adaptive control and seamless integration with robotic arms, enabling users to navigate complex environments with greater confidence and autonomy. The project also introduces the Robotic Assistive Mobility Manipulation Simulation (RAMMS)—a virtual platform that allows for safe, scalable testing in realistic simulated settings.
HERL’s selection for this landmark ARPA-H award is a significant milestone for Pitt, its first as a lead institution. The recognition builds on HERL’s pioneering work, including the development of the Mobility Enhancement Robotic Wheelchair (MEBot), which can autonomously climb curbs and stairs while maintaining a stable seat.
Each year, more than 100,000 wheelchair-related injuries are treated in emergency departments in the United States, often due to tipping and falling. RAMMP seeks to prevent those with an approach that actively involves wheelchair users, clinicians and advocacy groups in codesigning solutions tailored to real-world needs.
The project brings together a national consortium of partners, including Kinova Robotics, LUCI Mobility, ATDev, Carnegie Mellon University, Cornell University, Northeastern University, Purdue University and Indiana University.
“This is a complete redesign—from the seating system and robotic arm to the control and operating systems,” Cooper said. “Everything will be new.”
This award reflects Pittsburgh’s evolution from building physical infrastructure to pioneering digital infrastructure that will drive future health care innovations. “Steel built our bridges and skyscrapers,” Shekhar said. “Now, projects like RAMMP are building the digital foundations for transformative health solutions.”
Rob Rutenbar, senior vice chancellor for research at Pitt, congratulated Cooper and HERL and noted that the project’s collaborators reach across the “full spectrum” of research specialties for unique problem solving with health sciences technologies.
RAMMP promises not only to redefine assistive mobility but also to serve as a catalyst for broader advances in rehabilitation and robotics. With its emphasis on user-centered design and cutting-edge technology, RAMMP is poised to become a beacon of innovation—empowering individuals with disabilities and reshaping the future of mobility.
Cooper spoke to the importance of collaboration with people who bring skills beyond engineering and technology.
“We have occupational therapists, physical therapists and physicians on our team as well, because we need everybody's perspective and everybody's knowledge and experience to make this really successful, not only from a technical perspective, but from a social perspective and a medical perspective, to be a really, truly life changing, transformative assistive technology.”
He explained: “Our goal, really, is to show what can be done so we change everybody's human world.”
