Andrew Smiles

Nia Therapeutics is developing first-in-class neurostimulation implants to restore memory after brain injury and neurodegenerative disease. Our proprietary platform interprets the electrical activity in the brain associated with memory, and provides a personalized neurostimulation therapy. Our technology was developed at the University of Pennsylvania with support from DARPA and the United States BRAIN Initiative.

-Courses: Deep Learning, Movement Neuromechanics, Assistive Tech & Rehab Engineering, and Neural & Rehabilitation Engineering. 3.9 GPA overall. -Developed and validated a neural feedback hand-prosthesis slip prediction system, using machine intelligence and novel experimental design; expected 2021 publication -Developed augmented reality environment for phantom limb pain treatment; muscle activity classified with computer, movement prediction sent over Wi-Fi to Microsoft HoloLens, phantom hologram displayed movement in natural location

-Electrical and rehabilitation engineering of patient-facing developments for the e-OPRA artificial limb controller such as: new classification and control algorithms, noise removal from EMG through digital signal processing, and integration of advanced prosthetic hands into firmware capability -Independently brought-up new analog/digital board (ATmega324PB), providing first ever at-home simultaneous and proportional, naturalistic wrist rotation in a transhumeral amputee -Worked with patients to customize control and neural feedback thresholds, as well as problem solve individual biosignal irregularities -Coached, and coordinated the e-OPRA and x-OPRA Cybathlon teams and directed competition-specific R&D; teams came 3rd and 7th of 14

-Designed rough layout and optimized the quantity and feasibility of telecom rooms and Wi-Fi routers in a major Canadian airport expansion project; produced client-facing technical drawings -Drafted detail sheets for ICT hardware, coverage maps and room layouts using Revit, AutoCAD and MicroStation -Researched and documented state-of-the-art digital infrastructure trends, including actionable recommendations for telehealth and airport biometric security design -Collaborated with Architects, Electrical, Mechanical and Structural Engineers to gather logistic requirements for the facility’s ICT design -Completed audit of complex building infrastructure drawings and change requests for completeness and accuracy; completed technical investigation into door sensor design

-Created and documented acceptance criteria for newly developed features for a web service in constant growth -Tested newly developed features and assessed their impact to the overall service -Optimized and documented processes so that they could be understood/performed by future co-ops -Took on side projects such as the design of an automated testing system using Selenium WebDriver, and generated a set of rules to accept/reject long-form text to train a natural language processing engine

-Hardware and firmware design/development for special projects including a glass-mounted large-scale drawing robot, and digital picture frames streaming from Instagram -Iteratively designed and fabricated/3D-printed pieces to be used in larger projects -Sourced parts as well as prepared documents illustrating pros and cons of each alternative part; created progress reports as I was often working independently -Assisted with preparation of materials including research reports and technology primers

-Designed/performed stress tests for online services still in development, including email filters, and crowdsourcing web services -Created tickets and engaged with the development team directly, followed up to ensure the problem was fixed -Recreated old webpages and layouts, onto replacement domains using HTML/CSS

-Learned strong problem solving stratagem and leveraged excellent communication skills to support RCMP officers and public servants across Canada -Provided level one technical support by phone and email to resolve problems related to IT software, hardware, or connectivity issues (VPN and internet) -Provided follow-up services regarding user requests or issues until conclusion, by accurately logging and updating all Help Desk service requests -Quickly learned 20+ end user applications during two intensive weeks of training -Learned to ask the right questions to identify the source of the problem

- Experimented with technologies to create fun and engaging interactions to promote major brands - Assisted with design and construction of a large toy car track with a team of other engineers and digital specialists - Starred in online videos, and television interviews educating the consumer on product technologies and uses - Used RaspberryPi, Arduino, Python, Javascript