Engineering movement: Advancing mobility with next-generation robotic exoskeletons

Founded by a pair of professors from Simon Fraser University, Siamak Arzanpour and Edward Park, Human In Motion Robotics is a Vancouver-based robotics company looking to provide a mobility solution for people with lower extremity motor deficits and severe mobility impairments.  

Their exoskeleton, called XoMotion™, is designed to provide the ability to walk and stand in natural movement, eventually training the body to recover movement when possible.  

It’s an ambitious, cross-disciplinary project that Nafise Faridi Rad is proud to be a part of as a current postdoctoral fellow. A PhD graduate from the University of British Columbia, Rad’s interest in robots started in high school when she saw an MIT’s professor’s TED Talk who had returned movement to a dancer who had lost a leg.  

Rad began studying robotics with the ambition to see her work move beyond the lab and into commercial applications. Through her Mitacs Accelerate postdoc with Human In Motion Robotics, Nafise has gained hands-on experience applying her research in real-world settings, alongside interdisciplinary collaboration to identify challenges and help bring practical solutions closer to market.  

“Through Mitacs, I can work with cross-disciplinary teams and industry partners to have external validation of my research. Mitacs helps to turn the research into practice,” says Rad. 

Watch Nafise Rad share how collaboration and research are helping redefine mobility care. 

Find out more: Interested in opportunities as a postdoctoral fellow with Mitacs? Explore the Mitacs Accelerate Global Excellence Award.

About Mitacs

For over 25 years, Mitacs has helped grow the economy and develop the workforce of tomorrow, connecting industry with academia and global partners to solve real-world challenges. We support business-academic research collaboration through internships, co-funded with businesses, for undergraduate to graduate students and post-doctoral fellows.

As a national innovation connector, Mitacs takes a talent-first approach to strengthen innovation capacity and drive global competitiveness. We serve as an essential research-commercialization bridge, accelerating market entry and growth for new products and services.

This is a critical time for Canada to think big and take bold action. Mitacs is ready to help build a strong and resilient Canadian economy, powered by ideas, talent and innovation.

Mitacs is funded by the Government of Canada, the Government of Alberta, the Government of British Columbia, Research Manitoba, the Government of New Brunswick, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Government of Nova Scotia, the Government of Ontario, Innovation PEI, the Government of Quebec, the Government of Saskatchewan, and the Government of Yukon.