Keywords
Citation
(2003), "Professor is nominated for Midlander of the Year award", Industrial Robot, Vol. 30 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/ir.2003.04930bab.004
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2003, MCB UP Limited
Professor is nominated for Midlander of the Year award
Professor is nominated for Midlander of the Year award
Keywords: Robots, Disabled, Awards
A Staffordshire University professor has been nominated for Carlton Midlander of the Year award.
Professor Mike Topping, who heads the University’s Centre for Rehabilitation Robotics and is an Editorial Board member for this journal, has been put forward in recognition of his dedicated work to help improve the lives of disabled people in the region. The annual award scheme is organised by the television company Carlton and Mike and his team have already been profiled by Central News.
The Centre for Rehabilitation Robotics has established a worldwide reputation in the field of robotic design and Professor Topping’s developments have helped countless people live their lives with dignity.
“It’s a tremendous honour to be awarded this accolade – it’s really is very humbling”, said Professor Topping, who contracted polio at the age of five and has experienced the challenges facing the disabled firsthand.
“I went to a special school. There I soon realised there were a lot of people who were coping with far worse disabilities than mine. That experience has inspired me as a researcher to develop robotic aids that are designed to give disabled people their dignity. For example, there can be nothing more dignified than being able to eat for your self – and that is why I designed Handy 1.”
Handy 1, is an innovative robotic arm designed to help people with severe disabilities, such as cerebral palsy, motor neurone disease or paralysis following a severe stroke, to feed themselves.
The first person to use the device was Professor Topping, then 12-year-old neighbour Peter Higginbottom, who has cerebral palsy. Peter, now an adult, still plays an important role in Mike’s team as he works at the centre.
The innovation continues. The Centre for Rehabilitation Robotics is currently leading a consortium made up of organizations drawn from eight European countries to develop the Flexibot, a revolutionary snake-like device which will give disabled people even more freedom. Flexibot is Mike’s brainchild and its development is being backed by £1.5 million grant from the European Commission (EC).
For more information, contact: Professor Mike Topping. Tel: +44 01782 294477.