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prof.dr.ir. M. Sartori (Massimo)

Professor and Chair of Neuromechanical Engineering

About Me

I am a Professor and Chair of Neuromechanical Engineering at the University of Twente where I also direct the Neuromechanical Modelling & Engineering Lab

My research focuses on interfacing wearable robotic technologies with the neuromuscular system for enhancing human movement. On these topics I am directing personal grants (e.g. ERC Starting Grant) and am PI in consortium-based projects (e.g. H2020-ITN Project SimBionics).

I conducted my PhD (2009-2011) across the Universities of Padova (Italy), Western Australia (Australia) and Stanford (USA). I continued with a post-doc at the University of Göttingen (Germany, 2011) where I become Junior Research Group Leader in 2015. Since In April 2017 I joined the University of Twente as a tenure-track scientist where I am leading an expanding independent research group.

Throughout my career I received awards (e.g. OpenSim Outstanding Research), was guest editor in academic journals (e.g. IEEE TBME, Front Comput Neurosci), and was Workshop Chair at leading congresses (e.g. IEEE BioRob 2018) in the field.

I am currently Associate Editor at the IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems and Rehabilitation Engineering: https://www.embs.org/tnsre/associate-editors/. Moreover, I am a member of leading scientific societies spanning across the fields of robotics and biomechanics including: IEEE Robotics and Automation Society, IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society, IEEE International Consortium on Rehabilitation Robotics, and European Society of Biomechanics.

More about me via the UT Featured Scientist page.

Keywords: model-based control; model-based myoelectric control; wearable robot; electromyography; neuromechanics; biomechanics; neuromusculoskeletal modelling; human movement.

Expertise

Engineering & Materials Science
Electromyography
Exoskeleton (Robotics)
Muscle
Patient Rehabilitation
Robotics
Medicine & Life Sciences
Electromyography
Joints
Muscles

Ancillary Activities

  • IEEE
    Associate Editor at the IEEE Transactions of Neural System and Rehabilitation Engineering

Research

For detailed information about my research please visit my research group website

My goal is to establish a unique roadmap for discovering fundamental principles of movement at the interface between humans and machines. My research focuses on understanding the neuro-musculo-skeletal mechanisms underlying human movement and how these are altered by impairment. I apply neuro-mechanical modelling and electrophysiological signal processing, in a translational way, to develop real-time model-based control technologies for restoring natural motor function and for enhancing human health.

Publications

Recent
Ornelas-Kobayashi, R., Gogeascoechea, A. , & Sartori, M. (2023). Person-Specific Biophysical Modeling of Alpha-Motoneuron Pools Driven by in vivo Decoded Neural Synaptic Input. IEEE transactions on neural systems and rehabilitation engineering, 31, 1532-1541. https://doi.org/10.1109/TNSRE.2023.3247873
Wang, H. , Keemink, A. Q. L. , & Sartori, M. (2022). Identification of reflex neural controllers directly from locomotion data. Abstract from 9th World Congress of Biomechanics, WCB 2022, Taipei, Taiwan.
Wang, H. , Sartori, M. , & Durandau, G. V. (2022). Biomechanics in the wild: establish and validation of a wearable kinetic measurement system. Abstract from 27th Congress of the European Society of Biomechanics, ESB 2022, Porto, Portugal.
Caggiano, V., Wang, H. , Durandau, G. , Sartori, M., & Kumar, V. (2022). MyoSuite--A contact-rich simulation suite for musculoskeletal motor control. Proceedings of Machine Learning Research, 168.
Niehaus, S., Ajoudani, A., Bianchi, M. , Durandau, G., Fritzsche, L., Gaertner, C. , Refai, M. I. , Sartori, M., Wang, H., & Wischniewski, S. (2022). Human-centred design of robotic systems and exoskeletons using digital human models within the research project SOPHIA. Zeitschrift für Arbeitswissenschaft, 76(4), 450–458. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41449-022-00335-5
Manz, S., Valette, R., Damonte, F., Gaudio, L. A., González-Vargas, J. , Sartori, M., Dosen, S. , & Rietman, J. (2022). A review of user needs to drive the development of lower limb prostheses. Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation, 19, [119]. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12984-022-01097-1
Ornelas Kobayashi, R. E., Gogeascoechea Hernandez, A. D. J., Tomy, L. J. , van Asseldonk, E. H. F. , & Sartori, M. (2022). Neural data-driven model of spinal excitability changes induced by transcutaneous electrical stimulation in spinal cord injury subjects. In 2022 International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics (ICORR) IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/ICORR55369.2022.9896517
Romero-Sánchez, F., Luporini Menegaldo, L., Font-Llagunes, J. M. , & Sartori, M. (2022). Editorial: Rehabilitation robotics: Challenges in design, control, and real applications. Frontiers in neurorobotics, 16, [957905]. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnbot.2022.957905
Wang, H., Caggiano, V. , Durandau, G. , Sartori, M., & Kumar, V. (2022). MyoSim: Fast and physiologically realistic MuJoCo models for musculoskeletal and exoskeletal studies. In 2022 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, ICRA 2022 (pp. 8104-8111). (Proceedings - IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/ICRA46639.2022.9811684
Brouwer, N. P., Tabasi, A., Kingma, I., Stegeman, D. F., van Dijk, W. , Moya-Esteban, A. , Sartori, M., & van Dieën, J. H. (2022). Low back muscle action potential conduction velocity estimated using high-density electromyography. Journal of electromyography and kinesiology, 66, [102679]. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jelekin.2022.102679
Mohamed Refai, M. I., Wang, H. , Moya Esteban, A. , & Sartori, M. (2022). Fatigue analysis using electromyography driven musculoskeletal trunk models. Abstract from 27th Congress of the European Society of Biomechanics, ESB 2022, Porto, Portugal.
Romanato, M., Volpe, D., Guiotto, A., Spolaor, F. , Sartori, M., & Sawacha, Z. (2022). Towards the Use of Neuromusculoskeletal Modeling in Clinical Practice: A Feasibility Study in Parkinson Disease Patients. In D. Torricelli, M. Akay, & J. L. Pons (Eds.), Converging Clinical and Engineering Research on Neurorehabilitation IV: Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Neurorehabilitation (ICNR2020), October 13–16, 2020 (pp. 439-443). (Biosystems and Biorobotics; Vol. 28). Springer Science + Business Media. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-70316-5_70
Simonetti, D. , Koopman, H. F. J. M. , & Sartori, M. (2022). Smart wearable garment and rapid musculoskeletal modelling for accurate neuromechanical analysis: Smart wearable garment and rapid musculoskeletal modelling for accurate neuromechanical analysis. In D. Torricelli, M. Akay, & J. L. Pons (Eds.), Converging Clinical and Engineering Research on Neurorehabilitation: Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on NeuroRehabilitation(ICNR2020), October 13-16,2020 (pp. 121-125). (Biosystems & biorobotics; Vol. 28). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-70316-5_20
Cop, C. P. , Schouten, A. C. , Koopman, B. F. J. M. , & Sartori, M. (2022). A Muscle Model Incorporating Fiber Architecture Features for the Estimation of Joint Stiffness During Dynamic Movement. In D. Torricelli, M. Akay, & J. L. Pons (Eds.), Converging Clinical and Engineering Research on Neurorehabilitation IV: Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Neurorehabilitation (ICNR2020), October 13–16, 2020 (pp. 507-511). (Biosystems and Biorobotics; Vol. 28). Springer Science + Business Media. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-70316-5_81
Cavallo, G. , Cop, C. P. , Sartori, M. , Schouten, A. C., & Lataire, J. (2022). Identification of Time-Varying Ankle Joint Impedance During Periodic Torque Experiments Using Kernel-Based Regression. In D. Torricelli, M. Akay, & J. L. Pons (Eds.), Converging Clinical and Engineering Research on Neurorehabilitation IV: Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Neurorehabilitation (ICNR2020), October 13–16, 2020 (pp. 495-499). (Biosystems and Biorobotics; Vol. 28). Springer Science + Business Media. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-70316-5_79

UT Research Information System

Google Scholar Link

Projects

In 2016 and 2018 I was awarded a EU H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowship (MIMICS) and an ERC Starting Grant (INTERACT) respectively. I am co-leading a EU H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Training Network on Bionic Limb Control (SimBionics), an EU-EFRO project on smart sensing garments for stroke rehabilitation (GUTs), an EU H2020 Project of human-robot interaction for injury risk prevention (SOPHIA). I am involved in a NWO Perspectief project on wearable robotics. 

I previously led scientific activities on neuro-mechanical modelling and prosthetic/orthotic technologies on European and National projects including the ERC Advanced Grant DEMOVE (2011-2016), the FP7 EU Project H2R (2013-2016) and the BMBF Innovation Cluster INOPRO (2016-2020). I have served as Scientific Advisory Board member in the FP7 EU Project BioMot (2013-2016). 

Current Projects

Finished Projects

Media

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Contact Details

Visiting Address

University of Twente
Faculty of Engineering Technology
Horst Complex (building no. 20), room W111
De Horst 2
7522LW  Enschede
The Netherlands

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Mailing Address

University of Twente
Faculty of Engineering Technology
Horst Complex  W111
P.O. Box 217
7500 AE Enschede
The Netherlands

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