A networked demonstration of the collaborative project Virtual Reality Environment Assisting Recovery from Stroke premiered at the SIGGRAPH ASIA 2009 on December 19th, 2009 in Yokohama, Japan. UIC / EVL associate professor and technologist Daria Tsoupikova, Nikolay Stoykov (RIC) and Randy Vick (SAIC) presented the pre-clinical phase of an ongoing research project that uses a pneumatic glove, head and arm tracking, and a head-mounted display to assist hand rehabilitation for stroke patients.

The virtual reality environment was inspired by the story of Alice in Wonderland. The virtual host / therapist (March Hare) directs the guest / patient to perform tasks requiring repetitive grasp-and-release and individuated finger movements in the course of interacting with the numerous animated objects in the scene. The lecture outlined the research goals of this ongoing project and the interactive networked real-time demonstration highlighted the recent state of research. SIGGRAPH Asia is among the top peer reviewed exhibition and presentation venues in Computer Graphics, Digital Arts and Interactive Techniques - an international festival of art, animation, and innovative technologies.

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