Western professors Pooja Viswanathan and Marcus Drover will each receive $250,000 in federal funding through the New Frontiers in Research Fund (NFRF) to support their research centring underrepresented human experience in technological advancement.   Viswanathan, an electrical and computer engineering professor, and Drover, a chemistry professor, are among four Western researchers receiving a total of $1 million in NFRF grants, announced May 13. From technology development to graduate student training, the funding will support every stage of research, Viswanathan and Drover said.   

Using AI to support mobility  

Inspired by her grandmother’s experience with mobility aids, Viswanathan’s project aims to develop a new type of “smart walker” for people with mobility impairments.   “Watching my grandmother navigate daily life made me realize how much cognitive effort and attention can go into using what many people assume is a simple device,” said Viswanathan.   The walker will combine artificial intelligence (AI), adaptive brake technology and lightweight sensors to predict and adapt to instabilities like shaking or tilting. Though using novel technology and providing additional support, the smart walker aims to retain the look and feel of a four-wheel walker.   “Instead of creating a bulky or highly robotic device, we are developing something that still looks and feels familiar,” Viswanathan said. The project builds on foundational engineering work by Viswanathan’s collaborator and Western mechatronics professor Mehrdad Kermani, who is developing a novel electro-adhesive brake system. That system is supporting the adaptive brake system in Viswanathan’s project.   Interdisciplinary collaboration is crucial to this research, Viswanathan said. The two-year project – co-led by Sue Peters, a rehabilitation science professor in Western’s School of Physical Therapy – unites expertise across engineering, AI, health sciences and biomechanics to ensure the technology is practical and responds intelligently.   “Many ‘smart’ mobility devices developed in research settings focus primarily on the technology itself,” said Viswanathan. “In contrast, our project starts by understanding the experiences of walker users.”  Viswanathan’s research will follow a user-centered approach. In the first phase, walker users and rehabilitation professionals will be consulted to better understand challenges people face in daily mobility. Subsequent phases will involve testing smart walker prototypes, followed by real-world testing.  

“Technology is most impactful when it is shaped by the people who will actually use it.” – Pooja Viswanathan, Western professor of electrical and computer engineering

 

Using human perspectives to revitalize agriculture 

For Drover, user-centered technology begins in Canada’s greenhouses. In an era of labour shortages and rising environmental pressures, Drover’s work investigates how innovation can improve both environmental sustainability and the lives of workers.  He hopes to make greenhouse farming safer, smarter and more sustainable. Bringing together greenhouse workers and experts in chemistry, plant biology, sociology, engineering and labour studies, researchers are working to improve both crop production and working conditions for greenhouse labourers.   Researchers will interview and observe workers and connect with community organizations to gain an understanding of the challenges in greenhouse environments.  

“We want to demonstrate that technology can be developed in partnership with communities, not simply imposed on them.” – Marcus Drover, Western chemistry professor

Drover’s team will also develop new “soft sensors” for greenhouse plants. These sticker-like sensors monitor temperature, moisture, growth, nutrient levels and early signs of stress or disease.   That technology offers an alternative to existing greenhouse sensors and can support workers in making fast, accurate decisions to reduce waste, improve plant health and lower greenhouse environmental impacts.   “Unlike traditional greenhouse sensors, which are often bulky and difficult to maintain, these sensors are lightweight, low-cost and designed to work directly with individual plants,” said Drover.   His interdisciplinary research team will create professional development programs for greenhouse workers to build technical and transferable skills like leadership and digital literacy. They’ll also develop a free mobile app to support workers in identifying their strengths, accessing mentorship, multi-language resources and training opportunities. Along with colleagues from the University of Windsor, Drover will test the technologies and training programs in Southwestern Ontario. This area is home to one of Canada’s largest greenhouse sectors, positioning Western as an ideal environment for this research.  On a larger scale, Drover said he hopes the project will inspire conversations about the future of food systems, labour and sustainability.   “Agricultural innovation should improve sustainability and productivity while also supporting dignity, safety and opportunity for workers,” he added. “We also hope to inspire workers, especially migrant workers and underrepresented groups, to see agriculture and agri-tech as fields where they can build long-term careers and develop valuable professional skills.”  

More NFRF recipients

Along with Viswanathan and Drover, two other Western researchers will receive $250,000 for their research:  Eugene Wong – Physics and astronomy – Strategic Multimodal Approaches to Unlock Immunotherapy for Pancreatic Cancer  Pingzhao Hu – Biochemistry – AI-Driven Targeting of Cancer’s Master Switch to Make Immune-Cold Pancreatic Tumors Eradicable by Immunotherapy 

• Read more on professor Hu’s work

Learn more about how Western is turning curiosity into solutions.