The Name
Flint Rehabilitation Devices takes its name from the flint stone, a special type of rock that creates sparks when struck against steel. Tens of thousands of years ago, it was the use of this stone that first allowed humans to create fire, changing the course of civilization forever. There are few examples quite so dramatic as this that really capture how much of a difference the right tools can make. Here at Flint, we know how true this is for rehabilitation after an injury. While our rehabilitation devices cannot be used to start actual fires, we are confident that they are the right tools to spark recovery.
The Mission
Our mission is to develop effective, engaging rehabilitation devices based on the latest clinical research and engineering innovations in order to provide the spark people need to break through plateaus in their recovery and reach their maximum potential.
The People
Flint Rehabilitation Devices was founded by four researchers from the University of California, Irvine:
David Reinkensmeyer, Ph.D.
Dr. Reinkensmeyer has worked for many years in the field of rehabilitation technology. He was a postdoctoral fellow then research assistant professor in the Sensory Motor Performance Program, Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago and Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Northwestern University Medical School from 1994 – 1998. He joined U.C. Irvine in 1998 and is currently a Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, the Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, and the Department of Biomedical Engineering. While there, he has lead extensive research in neuromuscular control, motor learning, robotics, and rehabilitation. A major goal of his is to develop physically interacting, robotic and mechatronic devices to help the nervous system recover arm, hand, and leg movement ability after neurologic injuries such as stroke and spinal cord injury, as well as to understand the computational mechanisms of human motor learning in order to provide a rational basis for designing movement training devices.
Mark Bachman, Ph.D.
Dr. Bachman has worked for many years as the Principal Investigator of the MIDAS laboratory (Microelectronic Integrated Devices And Systems) at UC Irvine. His focus is on the development of miniaturized integrated sensor systems for use in human systems and consumer electronics. His work has pioneered technologies for at-home health care, miniaturized bionic and assistive devices, and products for telecommunications. He is also Director of the eHealth Collaboratory at Calit2-Irvine, a multidisciplinary center devoted to exploring the use of technology for empowering human health and well-being. In addition, Professor Bachman is Founding Director of UCI’s Bio-Organic Nanofabrication Facility, Founding Associate Director of UCI’s Integrated Nanosystems Research Facility, Program Director of UCI’s NSF IGERT LifeChips program. He is the author of over 10 patents and more than 60 peer reviewed journal and conference publications.
Nizan Friedman, M.S.
Nizan Friedman is a Ph.D. Candidate in Biomedical Engineering at UC Irvine with a focus in wearable sensors and neurological recovery after injury. He has designed numerous devices for both rehabilitation and monitoring movement. He is eager to see more of the devices developed in research labs become available to the public, and believes that new technologies should be used to increase access to rehabilitation. Primarily, he would like to see more devices that enable people to pursue their rehabilitation at home. His goal is create systems so engaging and effective, that people will become “addicted” to their rehabilitation programs.
Dan Zondervan, M.S.
Dan Zondervan is pursuing a PhD in Mechanical Engineering at UC Irvine and is involved in research on motor learning, rehabilitation, neurology, and assistive devices. Although fascinated with new technologies, his goal is to create devices that are simple and affordable enough to be used by anybody. He believes in a bottom up approach to problem solving, developing devices based on the latest neurological research aimed at understanding the underlying mechanisms that happen in the body during the recovery process. He hopes that this will enable patients to have customized rehabilitation programs which are optimized to their individual needs and injuries so that they can recover to their full potential.
