When U.S. Navy sailors operate high-speed boats in rough seas, repeated wave impacts travel through the hull and into their bodies, increasing the risk of traumatic injuries.
Mechanical engineering Professor Ashfaq Adnan at The University of Texas at Arlington is leading researchers from Brown University, Robert Morris University and the Southwest Research Institute to evaluate whether a lower-body exoskeleton can reduce injury risk for sailors operating fast boats in varying sea conditions. The team will also develop predictive algorithms to assess orthopedic and brain injury risk with and without the use of an exoskeleton.
"We are very glad to receive this funding from the Office of Naval Research's Force Health Protection program," Dr. Adnan said. "I am eager to lead this effort with my collaborators to advance our understanding of wearing exoskeletons in reducing injury risk for fast-boat riders. Over the last 10 years, our research has advanced our understanding of head injuries and expanded to the neck. Here, we are trying to understand how motion transmits throughout the body all the way to the head to hopefully protect our warfighters from the effects of persistent impacts."
When speedboat crews stand while traveling through waves, repeated up-and-down motion sends the impact forces from their feet through their body and into their heads. To study those forces, Adnan has built a unique simulator that replicates rough sea-state conditions in a laboratory setting. His team will also collect motion data from a speedboat operating on the ocean in progressively more intense sea conditions, beginning with calm waters.
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The research team will conduct two parallel studies. In the first, Adnan's group will replicate real-world sea conditions to determine whether wearing a lower-body exoskeleton reduces the impact forces experienced by sailors. Researchers at Brown will analyze the motion data collected at UTA to generate acceleration profiles used to assess brain injury risk assessment.
In the second study, researchers at Southwest Research Institute will conduct a full-body musculoskeletal analysis to examine how the human body responds to impact forces under varying sea conditions. Colleagues at Robert Morris will focus on head injury risk analysis using the same data.
Together, the four institutions will provide a comprehensive view of how sea-state conditions affect the body and whether a lower-body exoskeleton helps reduce injury risk.
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Adnan's research could play an important role in preventing injuries among Navy sailors, according to Office of Naval Research program officer Timothy Bentley.
"Navy sailors operating high-speed boats in all conditions are often exposed to impact forces that can result in extremely rough rides," Bentley said. "I am excited to see how the collaborative efforts of the four institutions led by Dr. Adnan at UTA develop innovative methods to reduce injury risk for fast-boat operators at sea, including the use of lower-limb autonomous exoskeleton systems to prevent injuries and especially traumatic brain injury."
— Jeremy Agor, College of Engineering
About The University of Texas at Arlington (UTA)
The University of Texas at Arlington is a growing public research university in the heart of Dallas-Fort Worth. With a student body of over 42,700, UTA is the second-largest institution in the University of Texas System, offering more than 180 undergraduate and graduate degree programs. Recognized as a Carnegie R-1 university, UTA stands among the nation's top 5% of institutions for research activity. UTA and its 280,000 alumni generate an annual economic impact of $28.8 billion for the state. The University has received the Innovation and Economic Prosperity designation from the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities and has earned recognition for its focus on student access and success, considered key drivers to economic growth and social progress for North Texas and beyond.
