Gassert, Roger, Prof. Dr.

Short Biography

Roger Gassert has been assistant professor of rehabilitation engineering at ETH Zürich since December 2008. Born in 1976 in Solothurn, Switzerland, he received the M.Sc. degree in microengineering and the Ph.D. degree in robotics and neuroscience from the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland in 2002 and 2006, respectively. During his Ph.D., which he partially carried out at ATR International in Kyoto, Japan, he systematically investigated actuation methods for applications in MR environments, and developed an MR-compatible robotic technology that lead to the first fMRI-compatible haptic interfaces allowing safe and gentle interaction with human motion during functional MRI. These systems are now being used to investigate sensorimotor control and related dysfunctions with partners in Japan, the UK and Switzerland.

He subsequently worked on the development and evaluation of robotic systems to train hand function after stroke as postdoctoral fellow at Imperial College London and Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, Canada, supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation. From December 2007 to November 2008 he headed the joint robotics lab between EPFL and the University of Tokyo at the Robotic Systems Lab at EPFL. His research interests are in rehabilitation- and medical robotics, haptics, assistive devices and neuroscience.

Selected Publications

Please refer to the lab publications page for a full list of publications.

Metzger, J.-C., Lambercy, O., and Gassert, R. (2012). High-Fidelity Rendering of Virtual Objects with the ReHapticKnob - Novel Avenues in Robot-Assisted Rehabilitation of Hand Function, Proc. Haptics Symposium 2012, in press.

Lambercy, O., Dovat, L., Yun H., Wee S.K., Kuah C., Chua K.S.G., Gassert R., Milner T., Teo C.L. and Burdet, E. (2011). Effects of a robot-assisted training of grasp and pronation/supination in chronic stroke: a pilot study. Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation, 8:63.

Ionta, S., Heydrich, L., Lenggenhager, B., Mouthon, M., Fornari, E., Chapuis, D., Gassert, R., and Blanke, O. (2011). Multisensory mechanisms in temporo-parietal cortex support self-consciousness. Neuron, 70 (2): 363–374.

Fluet, M.-C., Lambercy, O., and Gassert, R. (2011). Upper limb assessment using a virtual peg insertion test. Proc. IEEE International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics (ICORR). ICORR.2011.5975348, pages 1-6. Best interactive poster award.

Blanke, O., and Gassert, R. (2009). Total Control in Virtual Reality and Robotics. Frontiers in Neuroscience 3(1).

Gassert, R., Burdet, E., and Chinzei, K. (2008). Opportunities and challenges in MR-compatible robotics. IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Magazine, 27(3):15–22.

Gassert, R., Yamamoto, A., Chapuis, D., Dovat, L., Bleuler, H., and Burdet, E. (2006). Actuation methods for applications in MR environments. Concepts in Magnetic Resonance Part B: Magnetic Resonance Engineering, 29B(4):191—209.

Gassert, R., Moser, R., Burdet, E., and Bleuler, H. (2006). MRI/fMRI-compatible robotic system with force feedback for interaction with human motion. IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics, 11(2):216–224.