Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital has partnered with SportsArt Fitness, Inc., a leading manufacturer of professional grade fitness equipment, to launch international distribution of the hospital’s Intelligently Controlled Assistive Rehabilitation Elliptical Training System (ICARE).
The SportsArt ICARE will include parts manufactured by SourceOne in Lincoln, generating a positive economic impact to Nebraska.
Led by the director of Madonna’s Institute for Rehabilitation Science and Engineering, Judith Burnfield, PhD, PT, researchers spent three years developing the ICARE in collaboration with co-investigator Carl Nelson, PhD, from the Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and SourceOne custom manufacturing. Madonna’s research team also partnered with NUtech Ventures, an affiliate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln that connects researchers to the private sector, to commercialize the ICARE.
The ICARE includes many beneficial features, such as an adjustable height seat, overhead body weight support system, ramp, wheelchair platform, clinician platform, modified foot pedals, stairs and grab bars that greatly increase accessibility for individuals who are weak, deconditioned, or who have balance problems.
For more information about Madonna Research Institute projects, visit: http://www.madonna.org/research_institute.