Papers
10
Total Citations
143
H-Index
7
About
Eric M. Schearer is a leading researcher in neural engineering and rehabilitation robotics, specializing in restoring upper-limb movement for individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI). His work centers on hybrid systems that combine functional electrical stimulation (FES) with powered exoskeletons, addressing the critical challenge of enabling functional reaching and grasping. Schearer’s major contributions include developing control methods that overcome the inherent difficulties of FES—such as muscle fatigue and nonlinear dynamics—by integrating robotic assistance for precision and repeatability. His 2020 review on hybrid muscle stimulation and robotic assistance (65 citations) provides a foundational framework for the field, while his 2017 study on combining FES with exoskeletons for elbow flexion (19 citations) demonstrates practical control strategies. More recently, his 2024 multi-degree-of-freedom hybrid control paper (14 citations) advances system complexity. Schearer has also pioneered hands-free interfaces for robot-assisted self-feeding (2022, 8 citations) and introduced capability maps to visualize FES-activated arm function (2019). His work is highly cited and directly impacts rehabilitation engineering, offering promising pathways to restore independence for individuals with paralysis.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1
- 2
- 3Multi Degree of Freedom Hybrid FES and Robotic Control of the Upper Limb14 citations · 2024
- 4Evaluation of a semi-parametric model for high-dimensional FES control11 citations · 2015
- 5Identifying inverse human arm dynamics using a robotic testbed10 citations · 2014
- 6
- 7Proof-of-Concept: A Hands-Free Interface for Robot-Assisted Self-Feeding8 citations · 2022
- 8Functional Electrical Stimulation Capability Maps3 citations · 2019
- 9
- 10Humanoid Humeral Pointing Kinematics2 citations · 2002