People involved in the Healthcare Biorobotics Lab at the University of Oxford

Chenying Liu

Postdoctoral Research Associate

Chenying finished her DPhil in Engineering Science at the University of Oxford under the supervision of Professors Zhong You (Special Structures Group) and Perla Maiolino (Soft Robotics Lab). She has worked on modern structures inspired by origami (a.k.a. paper folding) and leveraged their exceptional mechanical properties to design robots with "intelligence". Chenying is always keen to explore how structures can benefit society in different domains. Working with Professor Liang He at the Podium Institute, Chenying is expediting her origami expertise to healthcare applications. Currently, she is developing origami-inspired personal protective equipment (e.g., helmets and exoskeletons) with improved protection and personalised design. Beyond research, Chenying teaches structures and mechanics at Christ Church.

Yixing Lei

Yixing is a researcher with a focus on rehabilitation, machine learning and computer vision. He holds an MSc degree in Human and Biological Robotics from Imperial College London, where he developed a camera-based Functional Electrical Stimulation calibration system for his thesis. He also has experience in designing and manufacturing soft robotics. Currently, as a DPhil student, Yixing aims to integrate motor learning theories with state-of-the-art technologies, such as motion capture systems and virtual reality, to enhance the training efficiency of youth athletes while reducing their risk of injury.

Lucy Buchanan

Lucy graduated from the University of Oxford in 2023 with an MEng in Engineering Science, specialising in Biomedical Engineering. Her final year project focussed on a soft-robotics wearable device for rehabilitation of Achilles tendon ruptures. Outside of her studies Lucy is a keen sportsperson, having competed nationally in gymnastics she now represents the University in Gymnastics, Trampolining and Athletics. She is staying on at Balliol College to combine her academic and sporting interests as a DPhil student with the Podium Analytics Institute for Youth Sports Medicine and Technology. Her research will focus on injury monitoring and prevention for safer practices in youth gymnastics.

Erik Vanegas Muller

Erik's DPhil research will test and analyse cardiac electrophysiological modelling with Physics Informed Neural Networks in youth athletes aged between 11 and 18. His work seeks to gain more insight into the spatiotemporal propagation of innervated action potentials to prevent arrhythmias, syncope, and, ultimately, sudden cardiac death. He graduated from the Technical University of Berlin with a Bachelor and Master of Science degree in Engineering Science, specialising in numerical methods, simulation, and control theory.

Shuai Mao

Shuai is developing a sports injury prediction model based on soft robotics like artificial muscles. His research objective is to build a robot avatar to analyse and predict teenage sports injuries and provide professional suggestions. He holds an MRes degree in Mechanical Engineering from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, where he completed research on mechanical system data-driven modelling with AI. He also has a second MSc degree in Advanced Mechanical Engineering from Imperial College London, where he researched gait-based actuation of an exoskeleton with sensor feedback.

Jiaqi Li

Jiaqi is a fourth-year undergraduate engineering student at the University of Oxford, specializing in information and biomedical engineering. She is currently immersed in a pioneering research project within the Healthcare Biorobotics Lab, focusing on the design and development of an AI-powered tracheal intubation training system. Prior to this, she contributed to projects ranging from indoor mapping for hospital population movement tracking to the creation of a closed-loop physiological device aimed at relieving postpartum stress urinary incontinence.

Zhongchao Zhou

Zhongchao Zhou earned his B.Eng. degree in Electromechanical Engineering from Qingdao University of Science & Technology, China, in 2018, followed by a M.Eng. degree from Chiba University, Japan, in 2021. He is currently a Doctoral candidate in Medical Engineering, Chiba university, Chiba, Japan. His research interests include soft rehabilitation and medical robotics, control theory and learning control.