Katja Mombaur, a professor at Heidelberg University in Germany, was named one of eight new Chairs by the Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science and Sport to help position Canada as a leader in science and innovation.
Professor Mombaur’s research program will focus on what Mombaur calls “motion intelligence,” a particular kind of AI that incorporates understanding of human movement and anticipation of human actions. A mathematician as well as an engineer, she uses mathematical modeling to teach robots how to move and to design the best possible assistive devices, such as exoskeletons and prosthetic limbs, for the elderly and disabled.
Launched in 2008, the CERC program awards world-renowned researchers and their teams up to $10 million over seven years to establish ambitious research programs at Canadian universities. Professor Mombaur is the third CERC appointed to the University of Waterloo.