Boston's ROCK 92.9 (BostonNewsroom.com): WPI Receives $2M To Expand Medical Robotics Training Facility

Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) has announced it will create a Medical Innovation and Training Center at its PracticePoint facility to translate medical robotics technology from the lab into actual health care environments.

According to a Patch of Worcester report, WPI received a $2 million state grant from the Healey-Driscoll administration to establish the center, in collaboration with UMass Chan Medical School. This center will provide space to test medical robots, connect developers with clinicians, and train nurses and medical residents to use robotic technology.

The Patch noted that the RoboBench grant program totals $6.6 million to support shared facilities, equipment, and resources that help robotics companies test products and move these products toward production.

WPI noted that the project aims to foster collaboration among engineers, entrepreneurs, and clinicians to address the region's shortage of facilities for medical robotics development.

“This investment will draw on the complementary strengths of WPI and UMass Chan Medical School, help address a critical gap in medical robotics commercialization, and strengthen Central Massachusetts' role in the commonwealth's innovation economy,” WPI Provost Andrew Sears stated in a university announcement.

PracticePoint serves as WPI's life sciences research, development, and training facility. It provides clinical environments and resources for designing, prototyping, testing, and evaluating health technologies and surgical innovations, according to WPI.

RoboBench grants were also awarded to Boston University, MassRobotics, and UMass Amherst. Combined, these projects are expected to leverage matching resources totaling more than $1.9 million from academic and industry partners, according to the Patch.