The purpose of the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (RERC) program is to improve the effectiveness of services authorized under the Rehabilitation Act by conducting advanced engineering research and development of innovative technologies designed to solve particular rehabilitation problems or remove environmental barriers.
The newly funded Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (RERC) in Assisting Stroke Survivors with Engineering Technology (ASSET) aims to mitigate long-term effects through focused research and development on wearable assistive devices. These devices are different from standard stroke patient therapy in that they are designed to restore the function of movement in an assistive manner, which permits device users to regain control of the movement of their limbs.